


The Boy with the Golden Eyes

by N_ginoza



Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: AU, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Avatar Zuko, Eventual Zutara, F/M, Minor Violence, Zhao is an absolute jerk hunting for the Avatar, Zhao's terrible honestly, water tribe zuko
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-03-04
Updated: 2017-12-01
Packaged: 2018-05-24 18:32:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 17
Words: 75,733
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6162733
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/N_ginoza/pseuds/N_ginoza
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>For the majority of his sixteen years, life was pretty quiet in the South Pole for Zuko, but everything changes when a young boy appears out of nowhere in search of the next Avatar with the Fire Navy on his tail. Zuko wishes he would just go away. Katara's excited that she has someone to finally teach her how to bend. AU</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The Airbender

The Boy with the Golden Eyes

Book One: The Beginning

Chapter One: The Airbender

The wind ruffled the young man's parka as he stood sentry with a whale-tooth spear in hand outside the small snowy village. He had been out there for hours, seemingly waiting for someone's impending arrival, staring off across the vast and icy ocean. As the oldest man currently in the Southern Water Tribe, it was his duty to protect it. The chief and his father would be disappointed if something bad were to happen to the Tribe while they were gone fighting in the one hundred year war.

"Zuko, you should come in for a bite to eat. You've been standing out here for far too long," said a kind voice.

Zuko turned and looked at the woman behind him and offered her a soft smile. She stood with her hands clasped before her, her large blue eyes gazing worriedly at him. She was a petite woman, short in stature and slim in figure. To Zuko and the entirety of the Tribe, she appeared fragile in appearance, but he knew better. To Zuko, she was the strongest woman he knew.

"I have to wait for them to return, Mother," he said.

His mother sighed behind him, "They wouldn't want you to freeze to death, you know."

He hung his head low and gripped his spear tighter in his hand. "I'm fine."

"Well, then maybe a bite to eat, then? You never got a chance to eat lunch today before Katara and Sokka wandered off to go fishing."

Zuko rolled his eyes and sighed. Katara and Sokka were the ones he was waiting sort of patiently for. Sokka had come out of his grandmother's animal-skin tent earlier in the day declaring that he was to bring in a major haul for dinner. His loud declaration had caught the attention of Sokka's younger sister Katara, who wanted to help her brother.

To Zuko, bringing Katara along spelled trouble. Not because she was a girl or anything, but because Sokka had a tendency to say something idiotic or rude that would rile up his little sister. Which tended to cause a massive display of destruction that could possibly alert a nearby Fire Navy ship.

"Yeah, and that is exactly why I can't eat now. You know how they are around each other."

His mother raised her eyebrow and crossed her arms over her chest. "And how are they?"

"They're terrible, Mother. Just last week Sokka made Katara so mad that she made a huge crack in the best igloo the village had."

"Oh, dear, I do remember that. Kanna was not very pleased with her grandchildren."

Kanna was notably the mother of Chief Hakoda, and also notably the grandmother to Katara and Sokka. Kanna was actually the leader of the Tribe at the moment, though Sokka liked to believe it was him due to being the only son of the chieftain. Zuko thought Kanna was an excellent grandmother to let Sokka continue to believe this.

"But you have to understand, Zuko. They will be fine. Come now, I have a pot of sea prunes cooking and I would rather not leave it unattended for much longer."

Zuko turned away. "I'm not hungry, but thank—."

His stomach growled. Loudly.

His mother laughed in equal volume as his stomach. "You're not hungry, you say? Well, more sea prune stew for me!"

Zuko grumbled out a low response to his mother and gripped his spear tightly once more. He tried to ignore the sound of her walking away in the snow back toward the village and toward their warm tent.

The cold didn't necessarily bother Zuko. He just found it rather annoying. His body temperature was always a little higher than that of an average person, which was something he found to be rather useful when he would watch for any incoming ships from the sea.

Zuko had a little secret, and that secret was that he was a firebender.

When he first firebent, Zuko was three and terrified. And he certainly wasn't the only one scared, either. His mother was equally frightened by his sudden ability, but his father appeared unsurprised. They made him swear that he would never tell anyone about it nor would he firebend where people could see him unless he was absolutely sure that it was a life or death situation. And so far in his sixteen years of life, he has never had to firebend in order to protect his life, but he came close when he was ten. That was when the Fire Nation arrived violently on their shore, and that was the day when the chief lost his wife to a firebender.

After that, Zuko was afraid to firebend. He hated his ability and wished that he could waterbend like Katara. Firebending was too violent and too harsh. Every time he sees the angry flame in his hand, he thinks of the men raiding his small village and causing so much terror and pain. It also reminds him that his father wasn't really his father, because the only way a man of the Water Tribe could firebend was if he were born of mixed parents.

When his stomach growled once more, Zuko sighed and turned back toward the village. He knew he could stand out in the cold for a few more hours, but he knew that he really needed to get food in his belly. And with a resigned sigh, he headed toward the tent he shared with his mother where she accepted him with a warm smile and a large bowl of sea prune stew.

\-----

Zuko didn't know that he had started to nod off until he heard a long, loud groan come from the outside of the tent. He snapped awake and searched the tent for his mother, but she was nowhere to be found.

"Mom?" he asked.

With no reply, Zuko pushes himself on his feet and grabbed his boots and spear. He only pushed one foot in before he was outside the tent and he stopped in his tracks.

Before him stood the biggest and hairiest six-legged beast he had ever seen before in his life with long horns.

Zuko took a tentative step back and dropped his other boot. "What in spirit's name is that thing?" He held on tighter to his spear and raised it up in hopefully a threatening manner.

"Zuko!"

He paused at the sound of Katara's voice. She was home!

"Katara, where are—."

He stopped when he saw her come out from behind the beast. She beamed at him and flicked her long braid over her shoulder and came up to him. Behind her, he saw an extremely displeased Sokka come out from around the beast mumbling something grumpily. A young boy jumped down from the top of the beast and Zuko could have sworn that he felt a gust of wind brush him as he landed.

Zuko narrowed his eyes. "Katara, who is that? And what is that thing?"

Katara looked over her shoulder at the boy and her smile grew larger. She turned back around and was about to answer when the boy bounced up to him.

"I'm Aang!" he announced.

"He's an airbender, Zuko! Show him, Aang!" Katara said.

Zuko sighed. The existence of airbenders was just an urban legend. A fairy tale, so to speak. No one had actually seen an airbender in years. Ever since Fire Lord Sozin started the war nearly one hundred years ago when he launched a deadly attack on the Air Nomads.

Zuko watched Aang get into what he assumed was a bending stance. The boy shifted his feet and moved his arms along with his body, and before Zuko could make a counter argument about the existence of airbenders, he felt a moderate gust of wind brush past him and push some loose snow on the ground into the air.

Was that…airbending?

Nearby children had ceased their playing and had run up to them. Some clapped their hands with glee and exclaimed for Aang to airbend again. Aang obliged them, twirling around lightly on his toes before he was moving around on a what he called "an air scooter."

Zuko didn't loosen his hold on his spear. "What's he doing here?"

"Y'know, I asked the same question! It seems like he's a bit far away from wherever the airbenders are!" Sokka piped up, crossing his arms over his chest.

Katara whirled around with her hands on her hips. "Sokka, we don't even know where the rest of the airbenders are! Just rumours that they—."

"Yeah, yeah, they live somewhere in the Earth Kingdom in hiding. Look, Katara, we can't just—."

She cut off her brother. "We can't just leave him alone out there! He was lost and we found him! And besides, Aang can teach me how to bend."

Sokka waved his arms around in the air. "Katara, he's an airbender."

"So?"

"You're a waterbender."

Zuko rolled his eyes at the sibling's quarrel and thanked the spirits that his parents never granted him a sibling, and with a sigh, he stepped forward.

"Guys." The siblings stopped and looked over at him. "What is that thing?"

Katara's eyes lit up at the question. She smiled and moved to pet the thing. "Oh, this is—."

Aang stopped playing with the children and whirled around at the teenagers and smiled. He shot forward until he landed before the beast and pat him on the nose.

"This is Appa! He's my flying bison. I named him after my great-grandfather's bison," he said.

"Flying…bison?" He lowered his spear when he sensed that he no longer needed it.

Sokka rolled his eyes. "Yeah, I don't believe it either, buddy."

"Sokka!"

Sokka looked back at his younger sister. "What? Things that big just don't fly. I'm sorry, Katara, but you just gotta believe me on this one."

"Oh, he flies," Aang interjected.

Sokka let out a frustrated groan. "Aang, things this big don't fly!"

"Appa does! He's just tired, is all!"

When a cold gust of wind blew over, Zuko gave the boy a glance-over. He lacked a parka or anything warm, wearing nothing but a threadbare tunic and a pair of thin-looking trousers and boots. How he survived this long out in the South Pole, Zuko would never know.

"Aren't you…a little cold?" he asked the boy.

"Not really. It's a little brisk, though," Aang said.

Katara rushed to Aang's side and grabbed onto his arm. "Let's get you inside! I'm sure that Gran-gran—."

"Kata—no! He's not coming inside our tent!" Sokka sputtered.

She huffed. "Well, he's not staying outside tonight."

Katara held onto Aang's arm tightly and dragged him toward her tent until it was just Sokka and Zuko. The children had long since gone back to their mothers and respective chores once Aang had stopped airbending and became no longer of interest to them. That…and their mothers really wanted them to resume their chores and remain a far away distance from the stranger to the village.

"You're just gonna let him stay?" Zuko heard Sokka start after him. "Zuko, we don't know where he came from. He's an outsider, we can't—."

"Your sister's right, Sokka. We can't just let him stay outside tonight," Zuko said.

"But what if he brought the enemy here, Zuko? What if the Fire Nation is on our doorstep tomorrow?"

Zuko stiffened, but didn't stop moving toward the tent.

When he pulled back the flap into the tent, he nodded his head respectfully at Kanna as she sat stiffly in the middle stirring a boiling pot of what smelled like whale. Her face was pinched into a frown directed toward the animated young boy sitting on one of the furs with Katara as she explained to him each of the tools and ornaments hanging from the ceiling of the tent.

"Zuko, Sokka, what is this?" she asked.

Zuko looked to the boy on the pile of soft furs and moved to sit across from Kanna. Sokka remained standing by the entrance of the tent with his arms crossed over his chest. Katara stopped explaining everything to Aang at her grandmother's tone and glanced over at them.

"Gran-gran, it wasn't me, it was Kata—."

"Sokka!"

Kanna held up a hand to silence her grandchildren. "Zuko, who is this?"

Zuko opened his mouth and was about to explain when Katara rushed over next to him and sat on her knees beside him. "Aang's an airbender, Gran-gran!"

Kanna stiffened and looked back over at the sleeping boy. "An airbender? I don't believe it."

Zuko could tell that Kanna was having a difficult time that Aang, a stranger who had seemingly appeared out of nowhere, was an airbender. Without a doubt Zuko was sure that Katara had introduced him once she and Aang had entered the tent, but ignored the tension that had coiled up within her grandmother at the sight of a stranger. Strangers weren't a good memory for the tribe.

"But Gran-gran, we saw him do it! We saw him airbend!" Katara urged.

Aang looked over at Katara and then at her grandmother and nodded unhelpfully.

"Katara," Kanna sighed. "Very few airbenders survived at the beginning of this war, and they have been keeping to themselves since. No one's seen an airbender in one hundred years."

"But the Avatars could still airbend—."

"The Avatar is born with the ability to bend all four elements, Katara," Kanna replied softly. "The Avatar is an airbender and has been since birth."

"But—Show her, Aang! Show her that you can airbend!"

Aang lifted his hand and flexed his wrist, but nothing came out when Kanna held up her hand. She turned to Zuko and Sokka and sighed. "Is he alone?" she asked.

This time it was Aang who jumped up. "Yes, I'm alone! I didn't bring anyone with me! No one in the Air Nation knows I'm here because I left without telling them!"

Kanna turned her eyes onto Aang. "Then what are you doing here?" she asked him sternly.

The young boy backed off slightly and shifted. "It's—it's for a special reason," he said.

"A special reason?" Kanna raised her eyebrow.

Sokka moved forward and grabbed Aang by his thin shirt and pulled him forward. "You better tell us your special reason, air-boy!"

Katara reached out and grabbed her brother's wrist and tried to push him off of Aang. "Sokka, stop!" she cried. "You'll hurt him!"

Zuko watched the siblings as they struggled over the airbender boy. He felt utterly hopeless in situations such as these. His mother had told him many times over to never get involved with their sibling quarrels ever since Katara accidentally froze him to the ground.

"Guys, stop it!" Aang cried out, pushing out a gust of wind to push both siblings away from him and snuffed out all candles in the tent. "I'm here…looking for the Avatar."

Katara and Sokka both gave Aang great perplexed looks that Zuko knew matched his own.

"The Avatar was reborn into the Fire Nation," Kanna sighed. "Our chances of winning this war now are slim to none."

Aang leaned forward toward the older woman. "No, they're not! The Avatar's not in the Fire Nation, and he hasn't been since he was born! I know so because my grandfather told me!"

"And you think the Avatar's just hiding out in the South Pole?"

"Sokka!"

Aang sighed. "Well, I kinda got lost on my way to the Southern Air Temple," he said. "I guess I went too south, huh?"

Zuko watched as Sokka visibly deflated. "You're kidding me, right?"

The boy sighed again. "No, I really was looking for the Southern Air Temple. I figured there I'd get some clues because I really have no idea where to find him."

"Are you certain that you weren't followed?" Kanna asked Aang.

"Ye—."

"Though, he did come with this huge monster with six legs and horns," Sokka mentioned.

"His name is Appa, Sokka, and he's a flying bison," Katara shot back at her brother.

"Yeaaaah."

"Enough," Kanna said. "He can stay the night, but the boy will need to leave tomorrow."

Aang smiled. "Really? That's great!" He bounced up onto his feet and bowed respectfully at the older woman. "Thank you, ma'am."

There was silence after that, and the only one in the tent who made a noise was Katara. She moved forward until she was very close to her grandmother. "But Gran-gran, can't he stay longer? He can teach me how to bend!"

"He's an airbender, Katara," Sokka stated plainly with a sigh.

Katara shot a glare over her shoulder. "I know, Sokka."

Aang beamed over at Katara. "He's right!"

Sokka let out a groan of displeasure.

Zuko sighed and got up from where he sat. For all he knew, he was done in the tent. He only meant to see what would become of Aang and see that he was settled. With Kanna allowing the boy to stay the night, Zuko felt like his presence was no longer needed.

And with a polite bow toward Kanna, he left the tent and walked out into the frigid air.

\-----

Katara grumbled to herself as she readied herself for bed that night. For the first time in her life she has met a bender that was not a firebender and she found that she would like to learn from him more than anything. But of course, her brother, grandmother, and even Zuko just had to agree that he was a threat and couldn't stay in the village. He was just a boy! What harm could he bring? It's not like Aang was Fire Nation!

With a frustrated huff, Katara grabbed her brush and began going through her freshly unbraided hair almost viciously. She winced when she hit a snag and stopped her movements. Deciding that she'd spare her poor hair from the anger directed at her family and Zuko, Katara decided it was best that she take a quick walk to vent off anger. And maybe practice some waterbending, too.

Mindful of Aang's sleeping form, Katara stepped out of the tent as she pulled her parka over her head. Sokka sat outside the tent sharpening his boomerang.

"And where do you think you're going?" he asked.

Katara huffed and crossed her arms over her chest. "What're you doing out here?"

Sokka stopped his sharpening. "I'm the one asking questions," he said, his voice cracking slightly.

"I'm going to go practice my waterbending, if you really wanted to know!"

"This late? Katara, stay in the tent!"

"Why? So you can watch me?" she challenged.

"Yeah, because Dad told me to take care of you!"

Katara recoiled and chose to remain silent. She knew her brother was tasked with keeping her and the village safe. Sokka had tried so hard to go along with the rest of the men to war, but their father refused.

"I thought Zuko was supposed to keep watch tonight?"

Sokka sighed. "He is. I just can't sleep because Aang's snoring so loudly. Of all the outsiders that had to spend the night in our tent, it had to be the biggest snorer in the entire world."

She smacked him on the arm.

"Ow! What was that for?"

"He can't help it, Sokka!"

"Well—."

She started to run off, and when she began to hear her brother protest she looked over her shoulder and shot, "I'm just going to go practice some waterbending moves. I'll be back in about an hour!"

The only reply she received was a grumble that sounded like "such a pain."

Katara giggled and turned back to continue on toward her usual little practice spot. It was her personal haven in the South Pole. Sure, everyone knew about it, but everyone also knew it was where she liked to practice. Her people have told her that they thought of her as their hope, and that made Katara want to become a master waterbender more than ever. What good was she if she couldn't control her abilities?

She looked over at the sentry standing guard. He was standing stiffly and looking out toward the sea, and Katara wondered how he could do that for so long. Even Sokka wasn't disciplined enough to do that.

The two boys would switch off every few hours to take watch. Zuko, because he couldn't sleep very well with the sun out, will take watch for the majority of the night to give Sokka time to get a good night's rest. Zuko would always be dead on his feet once Sokka was awake in the morning, and there have been times when Kanta, his mother, would have to come out to drag him back to his tent because he'd be so set on sleeping where he stood. How Zuko could stay out as long as he does during the night without dying of the cold, Katara would never know.

Zuko was…different compared to the other guys in the South Pole. Unlike the other men, when they were around, he was pale. Unlike the typical Water Tribe blue eyes, his eyes were the colour of molten gold. She had heard whispers of fear from the other young women in the Tribe, and it was no secret that Zuko was half Fire Nation. Sokka once told her that that was why Zuko was left behind in the South Pole, and the thought that the boy who had grown up a few tents down was part Fire Nation gave her an uneasy feeling in her stomach. But at the same time, Katara knew that he couldn't help it. It wasn't his fault who his biological father was.

With a sigh, Katara stepped in a bending stance and focused on the water before her. She raised her hand and smiled as the water rose with it, and then she lowered it. She took a step back and pulled the water close to her, then pushed it outward. Then she moved her hands up to call forth a globe of water from the ocean. She smiled and pulled it toward her, only to see it begin to wobble and shake in her grasp.

"Come on," she murmured.

Katara adjusted her fingers and the quivering water fell onto the snow. She clenched her hands together and groaned before she raised her hands once more to call up more water from the ocean, only to have it splash up and leave her thoroughly soaked.

"You need to loosen up."

She whirled around at the sudden voice behind her. Zuko stood behind her, arms crossed over his chest with his spear in hand. He looked vaguely amused.

"I am loosened up!"

Zuko shook his head. "No, you're not," he said simply.

"And what do you know about bending?" she shot back.

He ignored her. "You're too rigid. Water isn't rigid, it flows."

Her eyes widened and she glanced from Zuko to the water. She watched as the water moved in, but then bounced back once it hit the ice. It flowed back, it wasn't stiff.

"You're right," she said softly, annoyed that she hadn't thought of hit first. "And aren't you supposed to be standing watch over the village?" she said hotly.

Zuko nodded and turned to walk away, and she felt a wave of guilt wash over her. He was no doubt bored and jumped at the idea that he could talk to someone while he was "on duty" as Sokka called it. Sokka also mentioned that he didn't sleep at night, which she found weird. She assumed that it was because he was being nice and letting Sokka sleep at night.

She shifted her eyes to her feet and shivered when she remembered that she was covered in saltwater. She wrapped her arms around herself and shuddered again, this time more violently.

"You should get back to your tent," he spoke quietly as if sensing the chill that wracked through her body.

"Why can't you sleep at night?" she asked softly. "Whenever the sun is up, all you do is keep watch over the village at night."

He paused and looked over at her and scratched the back of his head. "I don't know, I've never been able to really sleep with the sun out."

She nodded at him and watched as he continued on toward his sentry post. With a sigh, she headed back to her tent, stopping to glance over at where he stood.


	2. The Outsider

Chapter Two: The Outsider

Katara woke the next morning with the smell of Gran-Gran's cooking wafting through the air and her stomach grumbling. Through her sleep-induced haze she was able to make out two voices in the tent, her grandmother's and Kanta's.

"How is Zuko this morning?" she heard her grandmother inquire thoughtfully.

"Oh, you know, very tired like he always is," Kanta sighed. "It's the only way he can sleep these days, and then when the sun goes down for the other half of the year, all he can do is sleep!"

Gran-Gran chuckled. "Sokka does hate that, you know."

"Oh, I imagine! But it's not Zuko's fault with—good morning, Katara!"

Katara sat up from her bed pallet full of animal furs and rubbed the sleep from her eyes. Kanta gave her a nervous smile.

"Morning, Kanta and Gran-Gran," she yawned.

"Sleep well, Katara?" Gran-Gran asked, stirring the contents of the pot.

Katara nodded and ran her fingers through her tangled hair. _What a mess, she thought, and to think! My bending master is going to see me like this!_

_Oh, La! Aang!_

Katara pushed the furs from her body and reached for her parka, trousers and boots. Gran-Gran and Kanta chuckled as she quickly pulled her trousers on followed by her boots. She hastily braided her hair as she started out of the tent, pulling on her parka on her way out.

"Remember your chores, Katara!" she heard Gran-Gran call from the inside of the tent.

She wasted no time in running toward her brother, who stood watch from his drooping watchtower. Sokka had his arms crossed over his chest as he pouted. His boomerang was propped at the base of his watchtower.

"Have you seen Aang?" she called.

Her brother huffed. "Yeaah, I've seen him," he said. "The whole village has seen him airbend around."

She whirled around. "Where? I don't see—."

Katara paused when she heard the sound of laughter. She gasped and took off in the direction of the glee, stopping short when she saw small children climb all over Appa. Some of the older children braided his hair and giggled with shameless glee.

She placed her hands on her hips and smiled, happy to finally see so much joy in her tribe for the first time in years. Why Sokka was being such a nut-brained spoilsport, she'd never know.

Shaking her head and giggling quietly, Katara headed over to where Appa lay. She patted his nose and smiled when he groaned.

Squeals of laughter were heard when a shadow flew by overhead. Katara whirled around and looked up, gasping when she saw Aang swirl around in the air before landing in the snow. In his hands he held a stick with orange fan-like wings.

Immediately upon his landing, the children ran up and surrounded him. Even the girls who were once playing with Appa's hair rose from their places and ran over to the airbender.

With a smile, Katara headed over to them, too.

\-----

Zuko jerked alert in his bed pallet at the sound of laughter emitting from outside the tent. It wasn't unusual for him to occasionally wake up, as he was a light sleeper, to the overall hustle and bustle of the tribe, but this was something different entirely. Generally, there was very little to no laughter as the people of his tribe completed their daily chores.

Dragging a hand through his sleep-tousled hair, Zuko moved off of his pallet and reached for his boots. He pulled them on and reached for his parka and left the tent in search of the source of the noise, not sure what he was going to find. And what he saw surprised him.

Zuko watched as Aang whirled around the village on a little sphere of air. Children of various ages chased him around with shouts of glee. From where he stood, he looked over and saw Katara laughing along with the children and Sokka grumpily standing sentry.

"Did they wake you?"

Zuko stiffened and turned to look over at his mother behind him. She held onto a clay pot full of fresh snow and was bringing it into the tent. No doubt she was going to ask him to light the reignite the fire in the tent so she could boil it.

He sighed. "Yes."

She chuckled and walked back into the tent. "Come with me, Zuko."

Bowing his head politely, he followed his mother back into the tent they shared. She promptly asked him to light the fire that had died out, as expected. She smiled her thanks and placed the pot over the flame so that the boiling process could begin. Once everything was set up, Zuko realized that his mother had a strange look on her face. It made him feel very uncomfortable.

"Mom, is something wrong?"

She looked up at him. "No! Nothing's wrong! I'm just thinking about how much you've grown." She reached forward and brushed his messy hair out of his eyes. "It seems like it was just yesterday that I first held you in my arms."

"Well…"

"Your father would be so proud of you, Zuko," she whispered.

Zuko's heart dropped a bit like it always did whenever his mother mentioned his father. Ever since he and the men of the tribe had left to do their part in the war, his mother would rarely talk about him. Whenever she had to talk about him as if he wasn't around, it always reminded her that she hadn't seen him for two years, and that she hadn't any idea when she'd see him next. Zuko felt the same way, for he missed his father.

He missed the fishing trips they would take. They would leave a couple of hours before the majority of the tribe was about to sleep for the night, and they would return late with woven baskets full of fish. Their mother, and the majority of the village in general, always loved it whenever they had decided to go fishing.

"Zuko."

He stopped and looked at his mother. She had moved away from the pot and had her hands folded tightly in her lap as she twisted them back and forth.

"Would you firebend to protect yourself?" Her eyes moved downward and Zuko couldn't remember ever seeing his mother look so…defeated in all his years. It was worrisome.

"Mom…?"

" _Will_ you firebend to protect yourself?" she asked.

He recoiled. "What? No! I won't! You and Dad always told me—."

"Forget what your father and I told you, Zuko. If you need to protect yourself—" she started.

"I'm—I won't firebend."

"Promise me you will to protect yourself and the lives of your tribe."

"I-I—!"

It wasn't hard for him to notice the lights within the tent grow instantly brighter as his temper increased.

"Is Katara allowed to bend? Because, ever since Katara was a little girl the chief ordered her not to waterbend. Even in the case of an emergency." He swallowed thickly. "Now that a stranger has arrived in our village, it makes the possibility of the Fire Nation showing up more likely!"

"Zuko, you're different than Katara—."

"How am I different than Katara? Is it because, unlike Katara, I can be just as destructive as those monsters who have nearly destroyed our tribe?" He began to shake in his anger. "Who-who hurt you!"

His mother visibly deflated and reached a hand out to him. "Zuko—."

Zuko recoiled from his mother's touch. "Don't touch me, please! I don't want to hurt you like they did!"

"You could never—," she started.

"You don't know what I'm capable of! I don't know what I'm capable of!" he exclaimed and the flames flared up to the ceiling of the tent.

His mother noticed this and her breath hitched in her throat. Zuko realized that his control was quickly slipping and he tried to bring his temper in check. His heart was hammering away in his chest and he sank to his knees and fisted his hands in his hair, mindful of the beads that were strung within it.

He was scared. He was so scared that he could hurt everyone and that the entire village would want nothing to do with him. They would cast him out in the icy tundra to fend for himself. Perhaps they would cast his mother out, too, for birthing him.

"You are different, Zuko," she said softly. "And that is not a bad thing."

He didn't say anything. It wasn't because he couldn't find anything to say in return to his mother, but because he heard Sokka shout that there was a ship approaching.

And from the sound of it, it wasn't one of theirs.

Rather than continue his argument with his mother, Zuko got up from where he knelt and left the tent. He spotted Sokka immediately standing on his flimsy watchtower, club in hand and gripped tightly.

"What kind of ship is it?" he called out.

Sokka turned to look at him, and Sokka saw him gulp. "Fire Nation," he said.

Zuko's heart stopped and fear crept up into his very being. The Fire Nation had not been on their doorstep in years. Ever since the last raid, the one that cost Katara and Sokka their mother, the Fire Nation had let them be. Despite the many years of being ignored by the Fire Nation, that didn't stop the village from fearing their return.

"How far out are they?" Zuko asked.

Zuko hoped that they would have enough time to get the tribe to gather the necessities and flee.

Sokka started to come down from his watchtower. "They're too close," he replied. "We need to get ready."

When the younger boy walked by him, Zuko couldn't help but see the image of the chief in Sokka. He smiled plaintively and turned to follow him, as always.

The gigging children had not yet stopped as they played around happily with Aang, but one look that Zuko shared with Katara was all it took before she came running up to them. Panic was evident on her face by the time she had come up to them.

"What's wrong?" she gasped.

Sokka moved into his tent and started to rummage through his things. "There's a Fire Navy ship out there," he said. "We need to get ready."

Her hand flew to her mouth. "Do you think they're here because of Aang?"

Zuko looked over at her and tried to reassure her. "It's too soon to tell."

Sokka stood. "Katara, help hide the children."

"And Aang," she said.

Her brother turned to her. "Katara, if the Fire Nation is here because of him…"

"We can't just hand him over to the Fire Nation, Sokka! He's just a kid!"

"Katara, we will do what is necessary to protect the tribe!"

Zuko could detect no argument in Sokka's tone. There was one thing Sokka never joked around about, and that was the safety of the entirety of the tribe and his family. For that, Zuko greatly admired the younger man.

He stepped forward. "Katara, please listen to your brother. We need to—."

"NO! There's no way that I'm just letting them take Aang!" Some of the snow around their feet melted and rippled. "He's here looking for the next Avatar, and he needs to succeed, Zuko!"

Katara stepped forward until she stared right at him. "Please, please don't let them take Aang! He's our only hope!"

Zuko stiffened and glanced over his shoulder where Aang stood amongst the chaos. Around them, women were scurrying across the snow and grabbing their children. The ones who were unable to find their children screamed out for them in panicked tones.

In the distance, Zuko heard the sound of ice cracking in the distance and his stomach dropped. He spared a glance over at Sokka, who nodded at him before he grasped the back of Katara's neck and turned her around.

"Go, Katara! We don't have time for this!"

Katara twisted in her brother's grasp. "No!"

She lashed her arm out, and with it, came a quick and unsteady whip of freshly melted snow. Zuko barely had time to dodge it and was about to reach out and give Sokka assistance in getting his younger sister to oblige him when the ground began to shake beneath their feet.

Both Zuko and Sokka halted their moments and stared in horror as the wall of snow that surrounded the village began to slowly crumble downward. Zuko's eyes widened when a metallic ship's bow began to push through the snow.

It felt as if the entire ground was shaking beneath their feet as the ship approached. Zuko's stomach clenched and he glanced over at Sokka, who nodded and reached for his club.

"What's the plan?" asked Zuko.

Sokka drew his mouth into a thin line. "The plan is to protect everyone and send these guys back to the Fire Nation."

Zuko opened his mouth to say something to the younger boy, but stopped when he noticed that the ship had stopped moving right before them. Sokka took a couple of steps back and raised his club above his head and ready to fight. Zuko followed his movements as best as he could, the hold on his spear tightening.

"Get ready," said Sokka.

The ship let out a furious hiss as steam seeped from the cracks. The ramp lowered to the snow-covered ground with a loud noise that nearly stopped Zuko's racing heartbeat.

Within moments of the ship's arrival, Zuko heard the footsteps of multiple soldiers making their way toward them. He clenched his hand tighter around his spear and took a deep breath as they appeared.

A man clad in red and gold armour walked down the plank onto the fresh snow. He had thick brown sideburns and hair tied back into a topknot. His eyes were gold in colour, like his. At the thought, Zuko braced his hold on his spear tighter and grit his teeth.

"I'm Captain Zhao, and I'm looking for an airbender. He flew south on a flying buffalo and I was wondering if you all have seen him," the solider said.

Zuko looked over to where he had lost saw Aang and the bison, and saw no one.

"Gather the rest of the savages. I have some questions for you all," Captain Zhao sneered.

Beside him, Zuko felt something in Sokka snap. The younger boy let out a furious howl as he dashed toward the man in red armour, his club raised over his head. Zuko was about to call out to Sokka, and reached out to try and grab the back of the younger man's parka, but his fingers barely missed as Sokka barrelled forward.

Captain Zhao merely smirked, got into a firebending stance, and punched a powerful flame toward Sokka.

\-----

A scream was caught in Katara's throat when she watched as the man from the Fire Navy ship blast a powerful ball of fire toward her brother. She was about to step forward and do her best to call up a wall of snow to protect him when Sokka rolled out of the way. Her heart stopped and didn't start to beat again until she noticed that the hood of his parka was lightly singed.

She ran toward her brother and kneeled down beside him, checking him over to make sure that it really was just his parka that was singed. She did her best to ignore her people leaving their homes to investigate the commotion. She wanted to turn around and yell out for them to stay inside, but she couldn't. She could only focus on the firebender and her brother in the snow.

"Get away, Katara!" Sokka whispered.

She shook her head and continued to check over her brother. "No way am I—."

"Where is the airbender?" The soldier interrupted.

"Not here," Zuko said.

Katara watched in horror as the Fire Nation solider turned his attentions toward Zuko and moved into a fighting stance. The younger boy shifted his footing and gripped his spear tighter making the solider tilt his head back to laugh maniacally.

"Do you really think you can fight me with that stick, boy?"

"No, but I'm not going to let you hurt my people," Zuko replied.

Fear gripped her heart when she saw a burst of flame leave the soldier's fist. Katara wanted nothing more than to leap toward Zuko and summon some snow into a shield to protect him. She wasn't expecting Zuko to shift his footing and avoid the ball of fire, which caused the women and children behind her to shriek as it moved past them and into the only igloo currently in the village.

Sokka moved off the ground and grabbed Katara by the arm. She was about to protest when he shot her a look that almost dared her to defy him as he pulled her toward the rest of the tribe.

"I see you have some fancy footwork, boy," the solider spat. "But can you avoid this?"

The soldier punched forward thrice, each punch sending a powerful blast toward Zuko and Katara couldn't keep the gasp from leaving her throat. Katara moved to step forward, but she felt her grandmother grip onto her upper arm tighter and pull her in.

"Don't, Katara," she whispered.

She looked at her grandmother. "But we have to help him! He'll die!"

"I have faith in Zuko, Katara, and you should, too," her grandmother said.

Zuko was able to side step the first blast and he barely escaped the second with a slight singe of his parka.

The third came up on him far too quickly, and with that, Katara lurched forward and screamed. "ZUKO, WATCH OUT!"

Time seemed to stop for Katara and she almost closed her eyes as the flame grew closer. Zuko stiffened and the spear left his hands. He moved his hands in front of him and… _brushed_ the ball of flame aside and into the snow at his feet.

All was silent, except for Zuko's panting. Both her village and the Fire Nation uttered no word as they all stared at the young boy who narrowly escaped the flames.

_Zuko was a firebender?_

Katara looked over at her grandmother, whose expression was void of all emotion. She couldn't read her grandmother and felt panic rise within her. She whirled around and looked at Kanta, who held her hands clutched to her chest as she bowed her head.

"Fight for us, Zuko," she whispered. "Protect us."

\-----

He firebent in front of the entire village and a group of Fire Nation soldiers. His mind flashed to everyone and he closed his eyes, feeling dread as it crept up within him. He would no longer be welcomed in the village. He would be an outcast left to travel in solitude of the South Pole.

"A firebending bastard, eh?" the solider snickered. "Well, if it isn't my lucky day!"

Zuko opened his eyes and narrowed them, but he kept them away from the man. The soldier did not drop his fighting stance. "Have you ever fought a master before, boy?"

Zuko did not reply.

"Answer me, boy!"

His eyes snapped to the soldier. "No, I haven't," he answered. "But I don't need to have in order to stop you."

"Oh, really? Well, let's see how you fair with this!"

The soldier leapt forward at Zuko and punched a powerful flame toward him. Zuko reached up with his hand and felt the flames lick at him and he took a step back. With his other hand, he grabbed onto the fire and like how he had observed Katara waterbend, he whirled it back at the soldier.

The man cackled as he disintegrated the fire.

"Now wherever did you learn that, boy? You fight like a waterbender!"

Zuko set his jaw and took a step forward and launched out a flame of his own from his fist. He was surprised that it had met its target, despite being substantially weaker than the practiced soldier's.

He wasn't surprised when the soldier easily deflected his attack.

"Do you really think that you can defeat me?"

Zuko refused to answer him and got into a stance that he had seen Katara awkwardly take more than once. This time he would be ready. This time he would pull the flame toward him and then push it back toward—

Zuko was unable to finish his train of thought when a blur out of the corner of his eye shot forward with a snarl. Sokka whipped around and launched his boomerang into the air at the soldier, who sidestepped it easily. The colour on Sokka's face paled as the firebender threw a fire blast at him.

"Sokka, get out—!"

Just when Zuko was sure that the fire was going to hit Sokka and hurt him, a gust of wind knocked into the flame and it disintegrated with a ferocious roar. Zuko stopped and looked over at where a young boy stood straight, his staff held in one hand and the other in the direction of where the wind had come from.

"The airbender…" the soldier shifted to face the boy.

Aang appeared unafraid, and if he was, he did a wonderful job at hiding it. The boy took a step forward and placed the blunt end of his staff down hard on the snow, causing another gust of wind to brush over everyone.

"Leave this village alone! It's me you want!" he shouted at the Fire Nation soldier.

The leader shot fire at them once more, but Aang was able to deflect it with a powerful blast of air, but this time it didn't just disintegrate. Instead, it roared into a nearby tent.

Zuko watched in horror as the tent was completely engulfed within seconds. It was impossible for him to drown out the cries of a woman and her two children as their home was destroyed. He wasn't pulled out of his helpless daze until he heard the thunk of Sokka's boomerang landing in the snow beside him.

"Are you saying you will come with me, airbender?"

Aang nodded. "I am," he said.

Zuko paused and was about to say something when Sokka held out a hand to stop him. "Let him go," he said.

"AANG, NO!" he heard Katara yell out. "DON'T DO THIS! YOU DON'T HAVE TO DO THIS!"

Zuko looked up to see Aang approach the group of soldiers and hold out his hands in order to be shackled. He diverted his eyes when he watched as they forced his hands behind his back.

"He wasn't with them, Sokka," Zuko whispered to his friend. "We can't just let them take him."

The younger boy stood ramrod straight. "We have to think of the tribe, Zuko."

"AANG!" Katara continued.

Steeling his resolve, Zuko moved away from Sokka and picked up his long forgotten spear from the ground. He was only able to take a few steps before he heard Sokka ask, "What do you think you're doing?"

Zuko didn't even turn back to look at him. Instead, he gripped his spear tighter and launched himself toward the enemy. As he swiftly approached, a soldier turned and saw him coming and moved to push a ball of flame at him. Zuko countered it and shifted the spear into his other hand as he narrowly avoided the second ball of fire.

He was close enough to the soldier to see every blemish on his face, and Zuko noticed that he, too, had the amber eyes. The thought made Zuko sick to his stomach and he pushed his spear forward until it caught in a weak spot of the man's armor.

The man howled in pain and swiped down at Zuko, who jumped out of the way before the flames could lick at him. Another fireball was heading directly toward him and Zuko didn't have time to gracefully avoid it. Instead, he wounded up in a heap in the snow. He winced as the ice crystals scratched at the skin on his cheek.

"KILL HIM!" and several gasps were heard from his tribe.

His heart stopped when he heard those words and he could feel a tear form at the corner of his eye. He sighed into the snow, his breath causing it to melt around his mouth as he eased his body into the snow.

"ZUKO!"

"ZUKO, NO!"

He heard the cries of his mother and Katara, but they sounded like they had when he had fallen into the water when he was eight. He remembered his mother screaming and calling for him to come back up to the surface before the chief and his father had come to his rescue.

The approaching footsteps were drowned out to him. He refused to acknowledge that his execution was imminent. He fisted his hand in the snow and let the tear that had formed roll down his cheek.

"WAIT! Don't kill him!" he heard Aang call out. "He's the Avatar!"

Zuko heard several gasps and the footsteps stopped. He lifted his head from the snow and stared at everyone. The soldiers looked down at him with a look of wonder and Aang looked guiltier than when he once caught Sokka eating all the seal jerky.

"The Avatar?" the leader asked. "How do I know you're not pulling my leg, boy?"

The soldier grabbed Aang's collar and hoisted him forward until they were nose-to-nose. Zuko had to give Aang some credit, for the boy didn't waver as he looked at the man, but at the same time, he wanted to box the boy on the ears.

"Sure is! He's sixteen and everything! And I don't think the Fire Lord would like it if you killed him here."

The leader looked over at Zuko and sneered, but then his look turned more thoughtful. "The Fire Lord is offering a lot of money for any information regarding the Avatar. Maybe I could get myself another ship with the reward money.

"Shackle him!" the leader cried. "And remember, the Avatar is one of the most powerful. Be sure to make it really tight!"

Zuko didn't fight them as they forced his arms behind his back and tied his hands together as tight as they could. He had to bite his tongue in order not to cry out as the ropes bit into his skin.

They hoisted him up and guided him toward where Aang and the leader stood. The leader looked him up and down and grinned maniacally.

"If you really are the Avatar, boy, then the Fire Lord will be the most pleased with me," the leader said.

Zuko made no attempt to struggle away from his captors, but he made sure to stare the leader of the soldiers dead in the eye. He narrowed his eyes and let them drag him toward the huge naval ship constructed purely of metal. Inwardly, Zuko felt his inner flame diminish at the thought of being taken to the Fire Nation Capital to meet with the Fire Lord…all because some random airbending stranger convinced the enemy that he was the Avatar.

Zuko tried to drown out the frantic whispers from his tribe as he was forced up the ramp and into the metal ship, but he couldn't. Their whispered voices made him feel nothing but dread. He had tried to avoid the worried, and tearful, eyes of his mother and Katara as he was led away, but was unable to.

_Is this what the waterbenders felt when they were all taken away? I…failed._

The ramp closed behind them, finally drowning out the whispers of his tribe. They were taken up to the deck of the ship as the engines began to fire up and depart the Southern Water Tribe.

Captain Zhao stood straight with his hands clasped behind his back. Two masked guards stood beside him, facing both Aang and Zuko.

"How are you so sure that this boy is the Avatar?"

Aang rolled back and forth on his feet. "Well, he is sixteen."

Zuko nearly groaned. The only reason why he was on this spirits-damned ship, and alive, was because Aang made up some superfluous story that he was the Avatar. It just wasn't possible. Sure, Zuko was sixteen, but he wasn't Fire Nation.

"A lot of firebending boys are sixteen," Captain Zhao countered.

"Well, this one's the Avatar," Aang said.

Captain Zhao turned to Aang and smirked.

"Well, we will certainly investigate your claims." The Captain took a step toward them and started to circle around them. His smirk grew into something that made Zuko feel even more dread than when he was forced into the ship.

"And you'll also be able to tell us where the Air Nation is."

Zuko felt his stomach turn.


	3. The Rescue

Chapter Three: The Rescue

Katara sat alone in her tent, her hands folded in her lap as she looked downward.

_Zuko was…a firebender? The Avatar?_

She shook her head and blinked away the tears. She had to think of a way to get him and Aang out of the Fire Nation's evil clutches and back in the South Pole. No doubt they were long gone, with that advanced powered ship of theirs.

"Ugh, what can I do?" she asked herself, bringing her palms up to cover her eyes.

"Katara!"

She turned her head toward the entrance of the tent as her brother came through. He smiled at her and gestured with a tilt to his head to follow him. "I have an idea. It may not work, but it's the best thing I've got right now," Sokka said.

"What cou—?"

Katara stood and followed her brother from the tent through the village. They stopped a small ways away from their home and he gestured toward the water. She peered around and noted a small canoe bobbing in the water, loaded mostly with Sokka's favourite weapons and Zuko's spear. She smiled, but it slowly faded to a frown.

"But Sokka, how can we catch a Fire Navy ship with this thing?"

Sokka shrugged. "I figured you could try _waterbending_ us out of the South Pole," he suggested.

Katara's heart sped up at the prospect that her older brother believed in her abilities. She was about to hug him when she heard a coughing sound from behind. Turning, she spotted her grandmother standing with a few bundles in her arms.

"What do you two think you're doing?" she asked.

Katara's heart plummeted and she looked down at her feet. She knew Sokka did the same. "We were just—."

"Going out to save Zuko and that airbender boy?"

Katara couldn't help but nod. "I promise that we'll be back, Gran-Gran, I—."

Her grandmother stopped her with a shake of her head. "Katara, my little waterbender, I have known for a long time that you and your brother would not stay here forever. The same goes for Zuko."

Katara lifted her head as her grandmother continued. "Zuko may very well be the Avatar, and I would not be surprised if that is why Aang really is here. If Zuko is the Avatar, then he is the world's only hope to ending this spirits-forsaken war."

Katara blinked. "But how could—I mean, how can Zuko be the Avatar? He's from the South Pole," she said.

"He is not," Gran-Gran said. "Zuko came late one night by the means of a old Fire Navy ship sixteen years ago. A general onboard demanded to speak to your father and requested that we take in Zuko, and Bato and Kanta adopted the boy."

Sokka stepped forward. "But why would a Fire Nation general give up the Avatar that his Fire Lord so badly wants?"

"We still don't know if Zuko is the next Avatar or not, but we have known since he was brought here that the possibility is extremely high. The general mentioned that he did not want Zuko to be treated as if he were 'the Fire Lord's puppet.'"

Their grandmother sighed and took a few steps until she was able to hand the bundles to each of her grandchildren. Katara nearly dropped hers as she sent her grandmother a curious look.

"You'll need supplies for your long journey, my brave grandchildren," she smiled. "I couldn't be more proud."

"But—," Sokka began.

Behind them, a low-groaning noise was heard and the siblings turned around to see Aang's giant flying bison standing behind them. He shook his scruffy head to rid it of the latest snowfall.

"Appa!" Katara cried as she ran to him and patted him on the nose. "You can take us to Aang and Zuko, can't you?"

Appa groaned.

"I knew you could!" she crooned

"Katara, he can't do anything but make noise and take up space," Sokka said.

She looked over at her brother and crossed her arms over her chest. "Well, I still feel like he'd be better than a canoe," she said.

"Hey! I worked hard to sneak this canoe away!"

"Be good to your sister, Sokka," Gran-Gran said, smiling warmly. "It's going to be a very long journey for you both and it won't do if she's upset with you."

Katara's heart clenched and she felt tears form on the edges of her eyes when it hit that they most likely wouldn't be coming back to the South Pole anytime soon. Not with an airbender and, according to Aang, the Avatar.

Katara stepped away from Appa and looked down at the snow beneath her feet. She'd never once thought about leaving home before. Her entire fourteen years of life have been spent in the South Pole, and she never could have imagined ever leaving.

Her lower lip began to tremble and she felt the warm grasp of her grandmother on either side of her cheeks. She looked up and saw her grandmother beaming at her. On the edges of her grandmother's eyes, she was crying.

"This is your destiny, my little waterbender."

Katara nodded and threw herself into her grandmother's arms. Gran-Gran patted her back soothingly, and Katara heard her sniffle.

"When you three come back home, I'll have a pot of stew on for you all to celebrate."

Katara laughed and let the tears fall from her eyes as she tugged onto her grandmother tighter. She felt Sokka come in closer and place his hand on her shoulder.

"I'd like that, Gran-Gran," he said.

"I'll help with that stew when you get back."

Katara pulled away from her brother and grandmother at the sound of a new voice joining them. Amidst her watery vision, she could make out Kanta's form as she approached.

Kanta's eyes were red and puffy. She had just lost her son to the Fire Nation, only two years after her husband had left for war.

_We're going to get him back!_

"Please bring my son back," she said.

Katara nodded at the older woman and smiled. "We'll bring Zuko back, ma'am! And Bato, too!"

Kanta's eyes widened and she stood up straighter. She smiled and bowed her head down. "Thank you, Katara. You really are the hope of this tribe."

_What?_

"But Zuko—."

"Zuko might be the world's hope for peace, but he can't do it without you, Katara."

"But—."

"My little waterbender, Zuko must go to the North Pole for his safety. Or, if the little airbender is correct, the Air Nation would also be a safe place for him," Gran-Gran said. "Zuko is no longer safe in the South."

Sokka stepped forward and glanced at both their grandmother and Kanta. "Don't worry, we'll get him back and where he needs to be."

Katara almost whirled around to face her brother. _Sokka was…positive? Oh, La!_

Sokka's words appeared to be all the reassurance that Gran-Gran and Kanta needed to hear, for the women were ushering them toward where Appa stood. Sokka pulled himself up onto the bison's back and reached down to help his sister.

They waved their goodbyes to the women on the ground and Katara snapped Appa's reins so that he would start to fly.

"Do you remember what Aang said yesterday?" Katara paused and looked over at Sokka. He sat on Appa's head and clutched the reins tightly, looking thoroughly confused.

_Hmm, what did Aang say yesterday?_

"Um, yee-haw?"

Appa did nothing and Sokka groaned.

"Hoorah? Yip-skip?"

Katara groaned and closed her eyes. At this time, Appa was their only hope to find Aang and Zuko, and it wasn't working.

_Spirits, what did Aang say? Um, Yip…YIP!_

Katara's eyes snapped open and she lurched forward. "Oh! Appa, Yip-yip!"

Appa let out a low, loud groan and slapped his tail against the water. Katara felt him lurch up, almost as if he'd jumped. She waited for the impact back down in the water, but it never came. She leaned over and glanced down to see that they were shooting up into the air at an incredible speed. Her eyes widened.

"He's flying, Katara! He's-He's actually flying!" Sokka was leaning over the edge of Appa's saddle, face lit up with glee. Katara couldn't help but smirk at her older brother's joy.

When he noticed her smirk, Sokka promptly sobered and grunted as he tried to pass off nonchalance. "So…big deal, he can fly. It's not like he can do much else."

But Katara did see him look back over the saddle with as much excitement as he did when their dad brought him his precious boomerang.

They were soaring through the air!

Katara giggled and gripped Appa's reins tighter and leaned forward. She reveled in the feeling of the air brushing across her face and through her hair, and she couldn't wait until she got a chance to see Gran-Gran again, she wouldn't believe how fantastic flying feels like!

She tossed her head over her shoulder and caught a glance at Sokka, who was yet again leaning over the edge of the bison's saddle as he giddily looked over. This was the most fun they had had in a long time, despite the circumstances not being ideal. It had been a long time since Katara had felt that exhilarating rush that came with doing something new and exciting for the first time.

Part of her wanted to let go of the reins, but the first time flyer in her put a stopper on that idea as soon as it had formed in her head. She wasn't like Sokka, who would probably do it just to see what would happen only to find out that it was actually a terrible idea later.

"Hey, just curious, how do we land this thing?" Sokka asked over his excitement of leaning over the edge of the saddle.

\-----

Zuko tugged on his restraints as he and Aang were being led down into the ship. He didn't like this. He was worried about the outcome of this… _what will happen to my village? My mother?_

"The man you wounded has a wife and two children at home. Did you think about that?" the soldier escorting them asked.

Zuko glanced at the soldier in front of them and narrowed his eyes. He then looked down at his feet and frowned. "Have you wondered what the Fire Nation does to the small villages? Sometimes they do a lot more than just wound," he said.

Zuko heard the soldier tighten his grip on his metal spear. "We wouldn't have to if you Water Tribes and Earth Kingdoms would just yield," he said. "You're not the only one who wants this war to end."

"And what makes you think that the Fire Nation should rule over everybody?" Aang added in. "There's supposed to be four nations for a reason! They're not for one person to rule completely!"

"Silence!"

"Y'know, you'll never win this war! Zuko here'll will make sure of that!"

"Hey!" Zuko looked over his shoulder and shot a glare at the young airbender, who winked at him in return.

"You're way out of your league, soldier-man! I'm pretty sure I can take you and your friend here out without breaking a sweat!"

"Silence!" the soldier said again, but with much more venom this time.

They stopped at a door and the soldier began to pull a ring of keys out of his pocket. As Zuko heard him place it in the keyhole, suddenly he was pushed into the wall to the left and Aang let out a deep breath that pushed the soldier in front forward. Aang's form shot backward and into the soldier behind him until Aang rammed him hard into the wall.

"Zuko, come on!" Aang called out as he shot forward up the stairs with a fairly impressive display of airbending.

Zuko grit his teeth and awkwardly leaned down to pick up the fallen soldier's spear and cut the ropes that held his hands together. The weight of it was much different than what it was used to, but it'd do for the time being. He took a deep breath and then turned to follow Aang. In this circumstance, it wasn't like he had much of a choice. He could either stay on the ship until he reached the Fire Nation or place his trust in a young boy with impressive breathing tricks up his sleeve.

He ran up the stairs two at a time until he reached the deck. Aang stood before him, looking around wildly. "Where's my staff?" the boy pondered.

"Forget about it. Their leader, he must—." Zuko wasn't able to finish his train of thought before Aang was off once more toward where Zuko assumed were the barracks. He groaned and took off after the airbender.

"Hey, wait! Let me cut—."

Aang was already long gone up into the barracks of the ship. Zuko groaned and clenched his hands tighter around the spear before he took off after the airbender once more.

"You could have at least let me cut the ropes for you."

Zuko was about to run after the airbender when he heard something walk up behind him. Everything his instincts told him was to flee, that this was very, very bad.

"And where do you think you're going?"

Zuko froze when he heard that familiar bone-chilling voice behind him. He glanced over his shoulder and he felt his hands shake as he held onto the spear. Captain Zhao stood before him, arms crossed over his chest and his eyebrows pinched tightly together.

Zuko shifted his footing and pointed the spear as his opponent opposite him got into a bending stance. Every malicious sneer from earlier was completely lost on the man as he suddenly charged toward Zuko. Zuko was not prepared for his more direct attack, and barely dodged the angry firebender.

He stumbled back, barely regaining his footing before Captain Zhao was coming back at him. Zuko took a deep breath before he bent his knees slightly and swung the spear in a controlled strike. The blade caught the captain's armour around his wrist, and Zuko could've sworn he saw a spark ignite at the impact.

__

I'm wide open!

Zuko grit his teeth and pulled the spear back and shifted it to just his right hand. He moved back to mentally regroup his thoughts together as the captain came back at him. Sparks left the man's fingertips as he surged forward, the flames gradually getting larger as he approached him. Zuko pulled the weapon back into his left hand and brought it horizontal in front of him so that it caught on Captain Zhao's armour like it had before.

Before the captain could force the fire onto him, Zuko shifted upward and changed the direction of the man's attack. Instead of directly hitting him, Captain Zhao's attack surged upwards and into the air before the flames fizzled out.

Captain Zhao let out an angry cry and he brought his foot up and pushed out a blast from the sole of his foot. The force knocked into Zuko's abdomen and he shot backward and rolled across the deck of the ship.

Zuko tried his best to ignore the pain radiating from his belly and moved to try and get back up, but he immediately fell back down. He heard Captain Zhao come back at him once more.

"I DON'T CARE IF YOU ARE THE AVATAR! AFTER I KILL YOU, WE'LL JUST BURN THE ENTIRE EARTH KINGDOM TO THE GROUND!"

Zuko's heart sped up and he felt the pain become a mere memory in the back of his head as he felt himself shoot forward. He grasped his spear, which had fallen not too far from him and had it up in front of him barely before Captain Zhao brought down a flame-covered fist upon him.

The force of the attack had Zuko stumbling backwards, and once he caught onto his footing once more, he swung the spear in front of him and narrowed his eyes. He took a breath and willed all his worries away.

__

I will not fail here, he thought. _I will fight for my tribe!_

Zuko shot forward, being in charge of the attack for the first time. Captain Zhao roared and shot forward to match him, but Zuko dodged the man and grasped his spear tighter and thrust it toward the weak spot in the man's armour.

Like with the man back at the village, Zuko was able to shove his spear into Captain Zhao's underarm. The man howled out in pain and tried to swipe his hand down on Zuko.

Zuko caught Captain Zhao's wrist before a flame could develop and connect with the side of his face. He grit his teeth and pushed the man's wrist away from him and narrowed his eyes at the man before him.

"I, Zuko of the Southern Water Tribe, will _not_ die by you!"

"YEAAAH! WATER TRIBE!" A voice yelled out suddenly.

__

Sokka?

Zuko paused and glanced up when he heard a loud groan come from above him. _Aang's…flying bison?_

The firebender took advantage of Zuko's momentary lapse in attention and wrenched his wrist out of the younger's grasp. Zuko cursed under his breath and pulled back just in time as Captain Zhao punched a flame toward him. In order to avoid the captain completely, he had to let go of the spear.

"You…you…I WILL KILL YOU!"

Captain Zhao looked like a madman. He was furious and he took a shaky step toward Zuko, his good arm outstretched toward him. Zuko's heart clenched in his chest when he realized that he now stood before his opponent unarmed.

"I'M GOING TO KILL YOU AND ALL THOSE SAVAGES!"

The captain grasped onto the handle of the spear and pulled it from his underarm. Zuko cringed when he heard the squelching sound of it leave his flesh and the vast amounts of blood fall onto the deck below them.

__

If I make this out of here alive, I'm going to kill Sokka, Zuko thought.

Captain Zhao shot forward to him, dropping the spear as he went and punched a flame right toward him. Zuko was barely able to dodge it.

"ZUKO! CATCH!" Sokka yelled as he threw down Zuko's spear.

Zuko looked up, briefly confused by the flying bison, and caught it with a triumphant smile, but he faltered when he noticed that the captain was running at him with a ball of flame flaring from the palm of his hand. Zuko was able to narrowly avoid it with a slight step to the right and he brought his spear up in a wide arc in attempt to catch the firebender's arm once more, but the metal plate of his armor stopped it.

"You'll have to do better than that, boy!"

Zuko grit his teeth and moved back quickly before panning to the right to avoid a blast of flame. The firebender shifted his feet, stumbled slightly, and blasted another right at him. Zuko was barely able to avoid it with a jump to the right and a swipe of his spear to send the fire out toward the sea.

"Do you think you can beat me with that stick? I clearly have the upper hand!" shouted the man as he charged toward Zuko.

He's right, Zuko thought, but I won't back down! And I'll only firebend if I have to!

Zuko dashed away from the man and turned abruptly. He held up his spear and launched himself at the captain, but was blocked when he felt something blast into his side. Zuko had to bite down on his tongue to avoid crying out when he landed on the hard metal deck, and he scrambled to reach for his side to figure out how bad the damage was. _Where did that come from? Someone else must have-_

"ZUKO, NO!" he heard Katara scream. "ZUKO!"

The pain was terrible. Never in his life had he experienced a burn this severe. A long time ago, Zuko may have accidentally burnt himself when he had first found out he could firebend, but never to this extent.

When he placed his hand on the burn, his head began to feel as if it were underwater and he was unconscious to the sounds of the captain yelling at his men for doing him harm. _It must really be that bad,_ he thought.

He opened his eyes and blinked frantically. His vision was blurry and tears pricked on the corners of his eyes.

He felt his consciousness begin to slip. He felt images begin to flash before his eyes erratically. Finally, a woman clothed in green flashed before him. Her back was to him and she slowly turned to him. She shook her head at him.

__

"Stay down," she said, her voice sounded closer to him than anything else around him, and yet, it seemed ethereal in a weird sort of way. _"This is not your fight anymore."_

His vision went black completely.

\-----

Katara's heart was beating frantically as she watched Aang flitter around the top deck with his staff. Every time a soldier was about to hit him with a ball of fire, he simply twirled his staff until the blaze went out. To Katara, it appeared that Aang was merely playing around with the soldiers.

She shook her head and glanced over to where Zuko lay on the deck. He was on his side, and she could barely make out the rise and fall of his chest. She was about to take a step toward him when three Fire Navy men came up before her. Their hands were outstretched, but more so threatening than functional as if they were bluffing.

__

I can do this!

Katara pulled the water up to herself and then directed it toward the enemy and—

"KATARA!"

She froze, turned, and grimaced at the sight of Sokka's feet being frozen to the ground. She meant to apologize, but now was not the time. Instead, she turned her back to the Fire Nation soldiers and called the water up to her once more before she released it behind her.

Katara slowly turned to glance behind her, and her heart beat wildly with glee at the sight of the Fire Nation soldiers frozen behind her. Then, she felt a pang of fear… _what if they had gotten closer_ , she thought.

She shook her head to clear it and ran past her brother, who was bashing at the ice that encased his feet. She stopped and knelt by Zuko's side and nearly choked when she smelled the charred flesh.

__

It reminds me of…no, stop it Katara! Don't think about this here!

Katara shook her head once more and fought the tears that welled up in her eyes and she pushed Zuko over onto his back. She leaned forward until she placed her ear directly above his heart, and she nearly gasped with relief when she heard his heart beat back at her.

Aang leapt toward her and blasted the soldiers coming toward her away. Some, even, found themselves pushed off the edge of the ship and into the icy waters below. Katara nodded her thanks to Aang as he stood in front of both her and Zuko.

"We need to get him on Appa," he said.

She nodded once more and was about to try and lift Zuko, but Sokka arrived almost as immediately as she had started and grasped onto one of Zuko's arms to sling around his shoulder. She was relieved to see Zuko grimace at the sudden movement.

"C'mon, buddy, don't die on me now," Sokka mumbled. "Aang, help me with this."

Aang turned around and nodded. "Sure," he said.

The airbender knelt stood beside them and glanced at Zuko before glancing at Katara. "Hey, can you please hold my staff for me?" he asked.

Katara nodded and took it from him as he wrapped another one of Zuko's arms around his shoulder. The boys nodded at each other and they walked him toward the flying bison that stood waiting on the deck. Aang propelled them all up into the saddle. Katara ran toward them, pausing to pick up Zuko's fallen spear, and raised her hand up so that her brother could reach down and pull her up into the bison as Aang jumped over onto Appa's head so he could reach the reins.

"Appa, yip-yip!" he called, and with a slap of the reins, they were soaring through the air.

Feeling the breeze through her hair was lost on Katara as she knelt over Zuko and pushed his parka and shirt up to inspect the damage. She almost gagged at the sight of the charred flesh staring back at her and she instantly remembered the sight of her mother's marred body in their tent. Shaking her head, Katara picked up her water skin and pulled all the water out of it and let it move over Zuko's skin. Whenever she, or Sokka, accidentally burned themselves lighting a fire, covering the burn in fresh snow or cold water was always a way to soothe it, and she figured that it would help Zuko.

Zuko moaned and his body began to shake to get away from the attention to his wound. "Sokka, hold him!" she cried to her brother.

She looked over at Aang. "We need to get back to the village! My grandmother, she could—!"

Aang looked over his shoulder and shook his head. "We can't go back right now! The Fire Nation will follow us back to your village and they won't be so nice the next time they come. We need to get far away," he said.

"But—."

Aang looked forward once more. "I think I may know where there may be some supplies. It's the closest place to here."

"Where is that?" Sokka asked.

"The Southern Air Temple," Aang said.

Sokka leaned forward. "But you said you don't know where that is! Zuko needs—!"

Aang glanced back again. "Look, it's the only idea I have right now! The Fire Nation can't get there as easily as they could anywhere else, and if they at least have supplies then we'll be able to help him!"

\-----

A lone figure stood on the edge of a ship's deck and stared out into the sea. He favoured one side, his body fatigued and sore. It had been a long time since he had fought with someone with so much... _fire_ that he had felt exhilarated yet angered because he was unable to crush his opponent. His opponent, the Avatar, left him a present - a wound that he had to cauterize closed to stem the blood flow.

_Oh, he's definitely the Avatar. There's no doubt about that, he thought._

Zhao smirked and stared up at the sky. He knew things had gotten interesting when his crew spotted the flying beast head south, but now everything changed when the Avatar and the little waterbender girl entered the picture.

_Oh, this was going to be fun._


	4. The Southern Air Temple

Chapter Four: The Southern Air Temple

They had been flying for two days and the Southern Air Temple was nowhere in sight. Katara was worried for Zuko. He was rarely awake, and when he was, he was in so much pain that it nearly brought her to tears. She wasn't used to seeing someone in this much pain without being able to offer much help, and it scared her. The last time she saw someone in this much pain was the last time her village was attacked by the Fire Nation, and the damage had been minimal and there had been far more experienced elders.

She reached down and pushed a stray strand of hair out of his eyes and tucked it behind his ear. Katara looked up and noticed Sokka was awakening from his nap and looking around.

"You have no idea where you're going, do you?" Sokka mumbled groggily, clearly annoyed.

Aang turned around from where he sat and smiled nervously. "Well, uhh, I knew I had to go south, but I went too far."

Katara sighed and glanced back down at Zuko's prone form.

"How do you not know where the Air Temple is? You're an airbender!" Sokka reasoned.

Aang looked forward again and out of the corner of Katara's eye she noticed he tightened his grip on Appa's reins. "Well, I'd know if it were safe to go to them!"

Sokka held his arms up in his defense. "Hey, I'm just saying. Maybe you should've taken a map with you when you left home."

"We don't have maps leading to them!"

At the sound of Aang's raised voice, Zuko shifted and groaned. Katara narrowed her eyes at the boys and shot them a glare before she softened it once more. Aang seemed oblivious to her glare, but Sokka barely noticed it and turned around to look at the drifting clouds.

"Maybe if the Fire Nation didn't attack us, we'd have thought to grab a map or two! But no! We were running for our lives and DIDN'T HAVE THE CHANCE TO!"

Katara noticed tears sprung up around the edges of Aang's eyes. She crept further along Appa's saddle until she was on the edge close to where Aang sat. She reached forward and placed a comforting hand on his shoulder and squeezed it lightly.

"I understand that they didn't, Aang. The Fire Nation doesn't give anyone much of a chance."

She kept her voice soft and low, and her eyes on the young airbender boy. Her breath hitched in her throat when she remembered them raiding her village, and her mother— _oh, La, her mother._

Her lip trembled at the memory of how she raced back to their tent with her father behind her only to find the charred remains of her mother's body. As soon as they had ran in, her father had grabbed her and forced her out of the tent and ordered her to find Gran-Gran. With his request, she had hoped that her mother was still alive, only to find out within the hour that she'd never hear her mother's beautiful laughter.

Aang loudly gulped and nodded. "The Fire Nation is ruthless. That's why I'm looking for the Avatar," he said. "Zuko's the only one that can put an end to this war correctly."

"How do you know he's the Avatar?" Sokka asked from where he sat. "Him being sixteen isn't enough evidence—."

"It's complicated," Aang said softly. "It's almost as if I can…feel him."

Sokka turned back toward them. "Well, that's creepy."

\-----

Pain was the first thing Zuko noticed when he started to awaken, followed by the loud cry of the airbender kid. He was accustomed to occasionally waking up in pain, usually after an intense mock battle between him and Sokka or training excessively, but this was something else entirely. His entire side felt like it was on fire and every breath he took was pained.

"So loud," he muttered out, his throat sore and scratchy. He was very thirsty.

Zuko heard a sharp gasp and felt hands on his arm. He opened his eyes and saw Katara's eyes staring back at him. She had tears swimming in her eyes and her bottom lip was trembling.

"Zuko…you're awake!"

He shut his eyes again and groaned.

"Do you remember what happened? That firebender, he—."

Katara was pushed to the side and Zuko felt a slightly clumsy bumbling come to rest beside him. "Hey, give the guy some space. He just woke up."

Zuko slowly reopened his eyes and watched as Sokka's face appeared before his own. "Hey, buddy, how're you feeling?"

"Th-thirsty," he mumbled.

"Oh!" he heard Katara exclaim before she came up to his other side.

He could barely make out her shifting around before he felt someone pulling him up slightly. He gasped when the actions caused his pained side to flare up once again and he grit his teeth.

"Sokka, be more careful with him!"

"I am being careful with him!"

Zuko groaned, now developing a headache. He just wanted a drink of water and a good, long sleep in the comfort of his warm tent. He'd feel as fresh as new snow within a few days.

When the first touch of water hit his lips, Zuko let his eyes slip shut as he felt it slosh down into his mouth and down the back of his throat. The water was the best thing he'd tasted since the last time he'd had his mother's cooking… _whenever that was_ , he mused.

After what seemed to be slightly too long, Zuko felt the water skin move away from his lips and the hands that held him slowly let him back down. He felt his tired body slowly seep back into sleep, and he didn't fight it. He let the soft grasp of sleep pull him down until he felt his body drift off, and he barely registered the happy cheers of the young airbender.

\-----

Zhao sat behind his desk in his ship's quarters, his eyes pouring over maps and documents of various claims of sightings of the Avatar.

Their ship was docked in a Fire National naval base while his men went out and gathered supplies and more fuel for their journey. He was also waiting for word from the Fire Lord, as he had written to him once his wounds had been tended to after his confrontation with the Avatar and the airbender boy.

A knock at the door stopped his train of thought and he glanced up.

"Enter," he spoke.

The heavy door was shifted open and a scrawny soldier stumbled in and bowed.

"Captain Zhao, we have a messenger from the Fire Lord."

Zhao looked up from his scroll and smirked. Ever since he had encountered the young Avatar, he had ordered his men to send word off to Fire Lord Ozai about his discovery.

A tall middle-aged woman entered into his quarters, her clothes of red and black. She wore a Fire National military uniform, made primarily of leathers and other light fabrics. She had a red cloak draped over her shoulders in order to protect her from the cold of the south. Her black hair was tied in a topknot resting on the top of her head. Her eyes were as green as fresh grass. She was pretty, for what she was.

"I have come with a message from the Fire Lord, Captain Zhao," she spoke.

Zhao quirked his eyebrow and leaned forward onto his good arm. "Go on."

The woman took a deep breath and Zhao could have sworn that she rolled her eyes. "You've been promoted to Commander, Zhao," the woman answered lazily. "The Fire Lord thanks you for the information you have provided us on the Avatar, and he wishes you good luck on his capture."

Zhao smirked and took the letter from the woman's hand and broke the seal. "Thank you for delivering the Fire Lord's message, Lieutenant Aya."

Lieutenant Aya bowed lightly and turned to move away. Zhao's smirk only grew. "Where do you think you're going?" His eyes scanned over the document, as lazily as she had spoken. "This letter says here that you are now under my command to help assist me in the Avatar's capture."

The woman froze in her spot, and he decided to continue. "The Fire Lord has said that if you are to aid in the capture of the Avatar, he will grant you the promotion to Captain of your very own vessel….how _unheard_ of for scum like you."

She narrowed her eyes. "How kind of our Fire Lord. And here I thought he asked me to deliver the missive to you because I am the fastest in the Fire Nation military."

The lieutenant turned away and left his quarters without another word as Zhao leaned forward on his desk and touched his fingers together. He smirked into his hands.

\-----

 _It was a dreary place,_ Zuko mused, _and definitely not his tent back home._

From the tales that Zuko had heard about the Air Nomads, the Southern Air Temple was nothing like how he assumed it would be. The tales made them out to be sacred and full of life, but now everything seemed…dead and depressed.

He leaned up against Appa's saddle and held onto his aching side. He faintly registered his lack of shirt covering his body and shivered slightly. He reached up and brushed his hand along his jawline, and his eyes widened. Judging by the slight stubble across his jaw, it must have been a little over two days since he fought the captain…a little over two days since he was blasted in the side by the spirit's be damned soldier without honour.

_What kind of man fights unfairly?_

"Zuko, you're awake!" Katara exclaimed, hurrying by his side.

He opened his eyes and glanced at her. He tried to offer her an easy smile, but found it difficult when he tried to straighten his body, which resulted in his side flaring up in pain.

"Are you in any pain?" she asked.

"I—I'm fine, "he lied as he bit down on his tongue when the pain in his side flared.

Katara glanced down at her feet. "I wish there was more I could do."

She had done a lot for him. Well, as much as she could on the back of a flying bison, anyways. She had simply just moved the water over his heated flesh, which soothed it some, and then wrapped it in a bandage that her grandmother had packed.

Sensing her upset over his condition, Zuko grimaced slightly and shifted toward her. He placed his hand on her shoulder and patted it soothingly and smiled.

"I'll be fine, Katara," he said. "You've done well."

Katara looked down and placed her hands in her lap. "I want…I want to try to put some water on your burn again," she said. "I feel like it might—I know it's—."

Zuko tried his best to offer her a smile. "That sounds like a good idea."

He watched her nod and she moved to kneel down beside him. She pulled aside her water skin and pulled it over her shoulder. She took a deep breath and flicked the top open and bent the water out until she shakily held it over him.

Katara took another deep breath and steadied her hands over him and closed her eyes. A soft glow erupted around them, and Zuko looked toward Katara to see her eyes wide with shock.

"Wh-what's going on? Katara!"

The water was _glowing!_ Zuko's eyes widened in shock and he tried to shift away from the glow, but grimaced when his side flared, but then he felt how soothing the water felt against his skin and relaxed. For the first time in two days, he felt some kind of relief as the water sunk into his body.

It was all over before he could feel total relief, and Katara nearly collapsed beside him.

"What was that?" he questioned.

Katara stiffened and shook her head. "I don't know. I've never done that before." She glanced down at her hands in amazement and then stared back at him before her eyes dropped down to his burn.

Zuko heard her gasp and felt her as she pressed her fingers on the edge of the wound. His body jerked and he hissed, but the pain was nowhere near as bad as it had been a few minutes prior.

"It looks better!" she exclaimed.

His eyes widened? "Wha—."

She poked and prodded at his wound, and Zuko hissed through clenched teeth. He swatted her hands away from him and rolled over onto his good side.

"You have to let me try again!"

"Hey, what's going on in here?"

Zuko turned around, hands still clutching onto his somewhat healed wound and glanced at Sokka standing in the entranceway to the room. He had his hands on his hips and looked slightly perturbed by the sight of Zuko lying on the ground shirtless near his younger sister.

Sokka's gaze darkened and he marched into the room. "What is going on in here."

Zuko registered Sokka's demand and shook his head. "She was just looking at—."

Katara stood up from where she had knelt quickly and smiled brightly at her brother. "My waterbending did something new!"

Sokka put his hands on Katara's upper arms and moved her out of the way. "That's nice, Katara. Now Zuko and I have to have a little—."

Zuko watched as Katara grasped onto her brother's wrist and tugged him to the side. "No, Sokka, I think I _healed_ him with my waterbending!"

Sokka blinked. "Wha—? You can't heal with waterbending! How many times have I hurt myself and I had to deal with you poking at me?"

"Well…," she started.

Another figure appeared in the entranceway, and Zuko glanced up to see the young airbender boy enter the room. He looked slightly confused and mostly curious, which is what Zuko has decided was the best way to describe the boy's face.

"What's going on in here?" he asked.

Sokka sidestepped around Katara. "I just caught—!"

Katara leapt toward the airbender. "Aang, I think I healed Zuko with my waterbending!"

Zuko waited for Aang to declare her claim preposterous and fictitious. He wasn't prepared for the young boy's face to go from its usual curious-riddled expression to elated.

"That's great!"

Sokka was exasperated and scrambled to try and find reason in what he just heard. Zuko was confused, too, but seeing as he'd had the privilege to witness Katara's newfound ability himself he decided that Katara's ability must not be that unknown.

"Is it a waterbender thing?" he asked.

Aang nodded. "Sure is! Only the greatest, most powerful waterbenders can heal." Aang whirled back toward Katara. "Katara, you're gonna be a great waterbender!"

Zuko leaned further into where he sat up and smiled. He watched as Katara beamed beautifully at the young airbender and turned back at her brother. Sokka appeared shocked, but nonetheless there was a hint of pride beneath it all. Zuko glanced up and closed his eyes, his smile still evident on his face.

\-----

It was hours later when Katara found herself glancing at a very large sealed door in the temple. After they had had a small spot of dinner, Katara decided she wanted to be alone for the time being. The last couple of days had been…heavy, to say the least. A week ago if anyone would have told her that she would be travelling on a giant flying bison and fighting the Fire Navy she probably would have called them crazy.

She shook her head and reached forward to place her palm against the wooden door. It was cold to the touch and Katara wondered what was behind it. Aang probably knew, but she didn't quite feel like going to him and asking. She was relishing in the alone time as they had spent the last two days practically flying around lost on Appa's back.

Taking a deep sigh, Katara turned around and leaned against the door. She let herself slowly slide down until she sat on the floor with her knees up against her chest. She hugged them tightly to her and took a deep breath.

_This is really happening…I'm really going to travel around the world._

Before her father and the men of her tribe had left the South Pole, the people of the Southern Water Tribe never left. All of their resources were carefully gathered and rationed out at home. They never had had a reason to leave before now.

"I wonder what Mom would do if she could've left," she mumbled into her knees.

"She'd probably want to go to the Earth Kingdom. She always wanted to see their flowers, y'know."

Katara jumped at the sound of her brother's voice. She turned to look over at him and he smiled back at her. Sokka came up and sat beside her against the heavy door.

Sokka sighed, "We can't go back now. I'd like to, but we can't with that flying-thing. The Fire Navy'd spot us before we got halfway back."

Katara nodded. "I-I don't want to go back. It's just…so surreal that this is actually happening. When I was little, I always wanted to see the Earth Kingdom…I just never thought that wish would come true," she said.

Her brother smiled and looked on forward. "Yeah, but I'm more excited for the-beating-up-firebenders part," he smirked.

She sat up straight and leaned into the door. "I just want to find a master to teach me," she said.

Sokka turned to look at her and smiled. "I think Mom would like that."

Tears pricked the edges of her eyes and Katara looked away from her brother as she sniffled. She felt him rest his hand on her shoulder and squeeze it.

"What do you think is behind these doors?" Sokka asked.

Katara shrugged. "Maybe Aang knows. He _is_ an airbender," Sokka continued.

Katara heard her brother sigh and he moved to stand. He reached a hand down to her and smiled. "Let's go back. I have a feeling that Aang's probably annoying the spirits out of Zuko right about now."

She took her brother's hand and he helped her stand. With a nod of her head, they set off back toward their small camp.

When they returned, Zuko was leaning up against Appa with his parka draped over his shoulders loosely with Aang kneeling before him. Once they grew closer to the camp, Katara realized that Zuko was agitated and Aang was excited.

"And this is a trick my older brother Gyatso taught me!"

Katara chuckled when she saw Zuko roll his eyes. Zuko paused and glanced over Aang's shoulder at her. Aang, having noticed Zuko's redirection turned around and smiled.

"Katara, you're back! Wanna see a neat airbending trick?"

Katara's heart sped up and she smiled brightly. "Of course!"

Aang crouched down before her and held out his hands. He beamed at her when he pulled them apart until there were three marbles swishing around in the air between his palms.

"Wo—!"

"That's nice, Aang." Sokka interrupted as he took a seat beside the fire. "Listen, we found a big set of doors that we can't open. Do you know anything about that?"

Aang rested his hand beneath his chin and rubbed. "Hm, it could be a number of things. The Air Nomads used to seal away things they didn't want anyone outside of their culture to see." He paused. "The only exception would have probably been the Avatar, of course."

Katara noticed that Aang shifted his gaze over to Zuko.

"I guess we can check it out before we leave tomorrow," Aang said. "There could be something important in there for Zuko."

\-----

They planned to leave the Southern Air Temple later that day to search for new supplies in a southern Earth Kingdom village. After taking care of his wounds and Sokka's hunger pains, their supplies had dwindled down to almost nothing within three days of their departure from the South Pole.

Sokka acted like it wasn't him who had eaten the majority of the seal jerky, but with Aang being a vegetarian and Zuko having spent the last couple of days in and out of sleep, he was sure it was the other boy. Katara was too responsible to eat all of the seal jerky, and there was no way she eat as much as Sokka.

Actually, Zuko was pretty sure no one in the world could eat as much as Sokka.

They had packed up their camp back into Appa's saddle after a small spot of breakfast, which included some tasty fruits they had found around the temple. Zuko wasn't used to the sweet tasting fruit, but he rather liked them.

He glanced over to where Katara and Aang sat. The two were alternating between eating moon peaches and placing them into bags to hold them over until they reached the Earth Kingdom. Sokka meanwhile, grumbled beside him over the lack of meat in their breakfast.

"The Air Nomads were vegetarians, Sokka," Aang had said when he had brought back a series of apples, moon peaches and nuts for their breakfast.

When Zuko finished the last of his sweet moon peach, he licked the juices off of his fingers and looked back over at Aang, who had also finished his fruit and was pulling the marbles out of a little pouch that he had tied to his belt again.

"Aang," Zuko called over to him. "We should go see what's behind those doors now."

The airbender nodded and stashed away his marbles once more before he pushed himself up. He reached down and helped Katara, who smiled in thanks. Beside him, Sokka grumbled as he took the last bite of an apple and shoved a handful of nuts in his pocket before he stood.

They left what was left of their little camp and headed back toward where Katara and Sokka said the large door was. Zuko was surprised to know that Aang had not yet seen it, as the boy had taken to exploring most of the temple the day before. That was, until, he found a Fire Nation helmet lying in the snow. He had come back solemn and wanting to be left alone…until Zuko made it known that he was awake. Then Aang took it upon himself to try and entertain him with various airbending tricks.

The four stopped in front of the heavy wooden doors covered in pipes and coils. Aang reached forward and knocked and smiled.

"You can only enter through here with airbending," Aang said.

Aang bent his knees and braced himself. He took a deep breath, whirled around, and the entire room was filled with a strong gust of air. Zuko heard the air swirl up into the copper pipes, playing out a little tune as it escaped through purple coils.

The coils started to turn around, the pitch growing lower before Zuko heard a few distinct clicks. The heavy wooden doors opened before them and the four were met with a dusty old room.

Zuko took a step forward, but stopped when he felt a shiver run along the length of his spine. He shook his head as Aang and Katara moved into the room, Sokka voicing his protests from behind. He took a deep, steadying breath, and took a few steps into the room and stopped.

Inside the room, Zuko was surrounded by hundreds… _no_ , thousands of statues. It was almost as if they coiled around him and all the way up around the walls until they reached the top.

"It's the hall of Avatars," Aang breathed, his eyes wide. "I thought this was only a legend!"

"There's so many!" Katara exclaimed.

Aang turned around toward her. "Well, there are a few missing, but—."

Zuko stopped listening to them and moved toward the last Avatar on the row. He was the last Avatar before the start of the war, seeing as the Air Nomads left before they would have been given an opportunity to sculpt the late Avatar Aang.

His eyes widened as stared at the statue before him. It was…calling to him for some reason. He was about to reach out and touch it when he heard laughter and he turned to look at Katara giggling over some marble trick that Aang was showing her.

 _Avatar Roku_ …how did he know that? There was no inscription present on or around the statue. It was just something that he felt like he knew.

"Oh, that's Avatar Roku!" Aang said animatedly as he came up to stand beside him. "He was the Avatar before my great-grandfather."

Katara and Sokka both turned. "Wait…" Sokka started.

"Your great-grandfather was the Avatar?" Katara asked.

Aang looked over at the two siblings and nodded. "Sure was! He also was the founder of what the Air Nation is today!"

The Water Tribe siblings stole a glance at each other and then looked back at the airbender boy. Zuko looked away from Aang when he noticed his stare.

Did he…know that I knew whom the statue was of?

Zuko turned back and glanced at Avatar Roku and he could have sworn that he saw a flash of red before him on the statue. He reached forward and touched the statue's hand.

"Hello, Zuko," a raspy voice echoed throughout his head.

He took a couple of steps back and swallowed the gasp that formed in the back of his throat. His heart thudded rapidly inside his chest. Zuko nervously glanced around the Hall of Avatars to see where the voice came from.

_Aang. Katara. Sokka. That's it._

He felt a drop of sweat run down the length of his back and he gulped. He turned away from Avatar Roku and walked back toward everyone.

"Zuko, are you all right?" Katara asked softly.

Zuko swallowed and nodded. "Yeah, I'm fine," he said.

Katara eyed him, but nodded her head and turned back to glance at the Water Tribe Avatar before her. "I wonder if he's from the North or South…."  
_  
North._

He stiffened. _How did I? It's not possible._

Zuko turned back around to see Aang was once more staring right at him, his face void of its usual confusion. In its stead, it was filled with knowing. Zuko swallowed the lump in the back of his throat and turned away from the airbender.

"I think we should head out," Zuko ground out and Aang nodded.


	5. The Warriors of Kyoshi

Chapter Five: The Warriors of Kyoshi

Zuko squinted and held up a hand to shield his eyes from the morning sun. It was never like this in the South Pole, and despite its welcoming warmth, Zuko wasn't used to its radiance.

They had landed moments ago, they had landed the bison, due to Aang complaining that " _Appa's tired!_ "

"Aang, we really need to find a village to get some supplies," Katara started.

The young airbender halted his steps and turned around and smiled weakly. "Uhh, I could have sworn that I saw a village around here somewhere when I was trying to fly to the Southern Air Temple…."

Zuko heard Sokka sigh beside him. He shut his eyes and took a deep breath.

"You have no idea where you are, do you?" Sokka crossed his arms over his chest. "Okay, it's final, the next time we see sweet, sweet civilization…we're getting a map."

Zuko nodded and agreed with Sokka.

"But going without a map is what makes travel fun!"

Both Zuko and Sokka smacked their palms against their foreheads and groaned. Katara giggled into her palm and looped her water skin over her shoulder.

"Well, it certainly is an experience," she said.

Zuko looked at her through the cracks in his fingers. She was smiling.

"But Sokka's right, Aang. We really should try to find a map."

Aang let out a little whine and kicked a small pebble right into a nearby bush. The pebble landed with a dull thud, and Zuko felt a cold shiver run down the length of his spine.

_Something's not right._

Zuko narrowed his eyes and got into a ready stance in front of Katara. He cursed himself for leaving his spear on Appa's back, as his hand-to-hand combat skills were subpar. Firebending was out of the question.

"Zuko, wha—?"

"Sssh," he whispered. "There's something behind that bush."

Sokka stepped beside Zuko, his hand reaching toward his back for his boomerang.

Aang whirled around. "Huh?"

As soon as Zuko saw Sokka's fingertips ghost over the surface of his boomerang, he heard a twig snap and five green figures shot out from behind the bushes. The figures split up only right as they came up on Aang, and then four branched off, two targeting him and the others after Sokka.

Zuko didn't have time to pay attention to Aang or Sokka. He grit his teeth when one of the figures appeared before him, and he brought his fists in close to his torso and did a series of rapid punches. The figure, avoided each and every one of his movements with ease, grabbed onto his wrist, and pushed him until he felt his face collide with the sand.

He barely registered the sound of a body connecting with the ground when he grabbed a handful of sand and rolled away when he felt his opponent come up against him. Once he was on his back, he threw a handful of sand toward his opponent's face.

When the sand collided with his opponent's face, they let out a girlish shriek and took a few steps back. Triumphant, Zuko got to his feet and surveyed his battleground.

Sokka was on the ground, blindfolded with his hands bound behind his back. Aang was being wrestled to the ground, spouting off claims that he was traveling with the Avatar and that they should let him go. Then his gaze was on Katara, whose arms were being forced behind her back.

Zuko's eyes widened and he stepped forward. Everything was red. He didn't care who these people were, and he didn't care who he was at that moment. Katara was not their enemy. She had done no wrong and was not to be brought into this violence.

"LET HER GO!" he screamed.

Everything that happened after the words left his lips was in slow motion. He watched as the flames developed around his fingertips and spread out along his arm, licking across his flesh in a way that he had denied for so long. They extended out until they were no longer in his grasp, and his anger turned into horror as it shot across the sand and collided with the girl who held Katara.

The girl cried out and let go of Katara, who looked down at her assailant with a mixture of shock and horror. She turned back toward Zuko, took a step back, and moved to kneel beside the fallen girl.

Zuko was about to step forward when he felt something sharp brush against the side of his neck and a cold voice spoke in his ear. "Take one more step, firebender, and that'll be the last thing you'll ever do."

He froze, and out of the corner of his eye he saw a young woman no older than he standing beside him. Her face was covered in a white face paint, which only harshened her youthful features.

He nodded at held up his hands in defeat. The young woman took a step away from, and he was about to breathe a sigh of relief when he felt a sharp jab to his healing side.

Black dots littered his vision and he had to bite his tongue to prevent a moan from escaping his lips. He fell to his knees and glanced at the young woman before him.

"Tie him up," she ordered as she left his side.

As he felt himself being roughly bound, he watched as the young woman knelt beside the fallen girl. Katara was trying to tell her something, but when more girls in green moved around Katara and pulled her away. Like him, Katara was roughly bound and he found himself biting his tongue once more.

_She isn't the enemy,_ he thought.

The wounded girl was taken away by another, leaving only three including what appeared to be the leader. The young woman who had ordered his binding wore a headdress that was different than the other girls, giving her an appearance as someone who ranked higher than the rest.

Zuko was dragged until he was forced to sit between Katara and Sokka. They were about to drag Aang, but before they were able to get a grasp on the back of his shirt, he stood abruptly and pushed himself back. He hovered in the air a little bit before his feet gently touched the ground.

"What's an airbender doing with a firebender?" the leader bit out.

Aang shrugged his shoulders and smiled. "Well, you see—."

"Don't lie!"

Aang's shoulders stiffened before they relaxed. "You see, I'm traveling with the Avatar and—," Aang started, but was cut off when a golden fan was thrust at his jugular. Zuko and Katara struggled against their restraints.

"Don't hurt him!" Katara exclaimed.

"He's just a kid!"

"Enough, firebender!"

The one who had subdued him spoke to him now, but she did not relax the metal fan that she held against Aang's neck. She narrowed her blue eyes at Zuko.

The leader turned back to look at Aang. "I told you not to lie. Why would I believe—?"

"Because he is the Avatar!"

Zuko noticed something ignited within the young woman, and he didn't like it. Her actions were no doubt stemmed from fear, and he understood that. He also understood that Aang was not going about this the right way.

_Spirits, he's going to get himself killed._

"That's enough, Suki."

The young leader stiffened and turned to look over her shoulder. Behind her stood a man dressed in blue, the hair on his face grey and his eyes kind.

"Master Oyaji." Her voice was soft and she let her arm fall to her side.

"I had heard that there was a firebender on our shores," the old man spoke. "Is this true?"

Zuko bowed his head against his restraints. He kept his gaze strictly toward his feet.

"Though, it is rather unusual for a firebender to be traveling with Water Tribe children and an Air Nomad."

"Oh, I'm not really an Air No—."

"Shut up, Aang!" Sokka exclaimed.

The older man's gaze softened. "You must be from that mysterious Air Nation, then," he said. "Welcome to Kyoshi Island."

"Master Oyaji…," Suki began.

"We may very well be staring at the Avatar, Suki. He is about the right age," Master Oyaji explained. "The next Avatar was reborn into the Fire Nation, after all."

_But I'm not Fire Nation…._

"But Master Oy—!"

"I trust that this boy will not harm the people of Kyoshi. Wen was only injured because he was forced into a corner." Master Oyaji turned to Zuko and looked him directly in the eyes. "Is that correct…?"

Zuko bowed his head. "Yes," he answered.

The older man nodded. "Well then, now that we've gotten that out of the way, what are your names? I understand that the airbender is Aang."

Zuko was about to answer when he felt Katara wriggle in her restraints. "I'm Katara, and this here is my brother Sokka," she said as she nudged him.

She turned and knocked her shoulder with Zuko's. "And this is Zuko."

Master Oyaji smiled at them and bowed his head at Zuko. "I know you have not received a warm welcoming to Kyoshi from our warriors, but I hope you understand that with the war that we cannot be too careful."

Zuko nodded. "I understand."

"Suki, untie them. We'll be taking them back to the village."

Zuko watched Suki's eyes widen in shock. She looked as if she were about to protest his request, but glanced down with a blush appearing on her cheeks. She fiddled around at her waist and pulled out a small knife.

Suki cut Katara free first, then Sokka. Aang was the third before she moved to Zuko. She narrowed her eyes at him when she cut him free, and Zuko could have sworn that he felt the knife's blade almost glide across his skin.

\-----

They were brought to a small village a little within twenty minutes inland, and Katara enjoyed every minute of the trek from the beach. Her worries of what had transpired on the beach had long been pushed in the back of her mind five minutes into the walk, when she noted fauna that she hadn't been able to see back at the Southern Air Temple.

She paused when she noticed the girl that Zuko had burned sitting beside a water barrel. An older woman sat beside her, clutching onto a wet rag and applied it to the girl's shoulder. The girl, Wen, hissed at the contact but did not flinch.

Without giving much thought, Katara fell out of step with everyone around her and walked until she stood before Wen and the older woman.

Katara took a deep breath and bowed at the waist. "My name's Katara, and I'd like to help!"

She slowly looked up to see two pairs of curious eyes staring back at her. Wen appeared standoffish, unsure if she was to trust Katara, but curious nonetheless.

Feeling that she needed further explanation of what she could do, Katara straightened her back and braced her hand on her water skin. She tried to offer both women a reassuring smile.

"I-I have healing abilities," she said. "And I would like to try and help you."

The girl eyed Katara warily, but nodded after the older woman gave her a nod of reassurance. Katara knelt before the girl and carefully reached forward to inspect the blistering wound. She almost cringed at the sight, the very image of it reminding her of what had happened to her mother.

_Zuko did this. He has the power to do this, she thought, but he used it to protect me. He didn't know._

Katara took a deep breath and pulled the water out of her water skin. She lowered it down onto Wen's blistering wound. The young girl flinched and whimpered, but relaxed once the cool water worked into her skin.

"I'm sorry what happened earlier," she said.

Wen stiffened, and Katara continued. "I didn't know that he was going do that. We just found out that he could do that, actually."

"You've known him for a while?"

Katara nodded. "I've known Zuko all my life. He grew up in the South Pole with my brother and me."

"And you just found out he's a firebender?"

Katara nodded again.

"Do you trust him?" Wen asked.

Katara glanced up at the young girl and smiled. "I do," she said.

Katara furrowed her brow and gave every bit of her concentration onto Wen's wound. The young girl watched her avidly, most likely watching her to make sure she wasn't going to do anything of ill nature and partially because she was genuinely curious.

When a bright blue light appeared around Wen's burn wound, the young girl to yelp and lurch up. She grabbed Katara tightly by the wrist and wrenched her hands away from her body.

"What do you think you're doing to me? "

"I'm healing you, that's how—!" Wen continued to move away from her.

"Stay away from me!"

Katara was pushed away by a surprising amount of strength from the young girl. "Wait, I-they're my healing abilities! I use waterbending and that's what it looks like!"

Katara tried to reach for Wen, but the girl curled away from her, clutching onto her pained shoulder as her chest heaved. The older woman placed a reassuring hand on the young girl's shoulder and beckoned her back toward Katara.

"She is telling the truth, my young warrior," she said kindly. "Powerful waterbenders can heal. Let Katara help you."

Wen cast a nervous glance back at Katara, who tried to give her a reassuring smile. Wen nodded hesitantly and shuffled closer to Katara, who focused all her attention on drawing the water back up and placing it on the girl's burn.

Katara took a deep breath once more, and the bright glow of the water settled deeper into Wen until it began to repair Zuko's damage.

When Katara pulled the water away, she wasn't aware that she had been breathing heavily. Sweat had rolled down her temples and she felt her entire body begin to shake. The healing had completely stolen all the energy out of her body.

She took in a deep breath and looked down at Wen's shoulder, and her heart sped up in joy when she noticed that all that was there was a pink outline of the wound. She smiled brightly and watched as the young girl move to a sitting position. She glanced down at where her burn once was, and smiled back at Katara.

"You were—thank you!"

"It wasn't a problem!"

Katara turned to look over her shoulder, and stiffened when she realized that Zuko had been watching the entire exchange from afar. Beside him stood Aang, who was chatting amicably amongst Sokka and a couple of the Kyoshi Warriors.

She gave him a reassuring smile, hoping that the guilt of hurting Wen would dissipate, but Zuko merely looked away.

\-----

They were invited to have a quick meal in one of the guesthouses on the island. Aang had been the one to accept the invitation, much to Suki's chagrin. The leader of the Kyoshi Warriors had looked taken aback when Master Oyaji had suggested that they stay on the island for a little while, and upset when he mentioned feeding them.

Suki had seemed fine with Katara, having seen her heal Wen's wound just an hour before. She had managed a polite bow to her.

Zuko held up a pastry and brought it up to his nose to sniff it. Never in his sixteen years had he ever encountered such a sweet smelling food. He took a hesitant bite out of it and found that he was not at all repulsed by it, but noted that it would probably be best to consume the food within moderation.

He chewed slowly and looked over his shoulder out the large window behind him. There stood proudly was the statue of Avatar Kyoshi, being cleaned by the villagers.

"It's great that they're cleaning up Avatar Kyoshi's statue."

Zuko turned to look over at Katara, who appeared to be comparing two different sweets. "We're not even sure if I am the Avatar," he mumbled.

"I don't know, Aang seems pretty convinced," she teased.

"Aang is also excellent at getting us into dangerous situations," he reasoned.

Sokka grumbled in affirmation.

"Aang knows what he's doing!"

Zuko sighed. "He got lost on the way to the Southern Air Temple—."

Katara crossed her arms over her chest and narrowed her eyes. "Well, if he'd had a map I'm sure he would've found it!"

"What kind of person goes on a trip unprepared, Katara?" Sokka turned toward his sister, seeming to put away the thoughts of being defeated by a bunch of female warriors to the back of his mind.

"I wouldn't know. I've never been on a trip far away from home before, and I doubt Aang has, too!"

Sokka, seemingly annoyed by his little sister, groaned and turned back around. He grumbled out a few choice words that would've made Katara angrier if she would've heard him as he crossed his arms over his chest.

Zuko frowned and set his pastry back down on the table. From what he had gathered since meeting the young airbender, Aang wasn't stupid. He was a little oblivious and didn't know when to shut his mouth, but he wasn't an idiot.

_What if he...what if Aang had meant to go to the South Pole all along?_

Suddenly, the door slid open and Aang walked into the room. He was still pulling up his trousers from when he had left to attend to some of his needs just a few short minutes before and he seemed oblivious to the anger radiating off Katara and the annoyance off Sokka.

"So, what's good in here?" he asked as he sat opposite of Zuko, picked up a frosted pastry and sniffed it.

\-----

It was hours later when Katara found herself in another room of the guesthouse. It was on a lower level, complete with a tea set in the middle of the room. The boys were still outside. Sokka had walked off mumbling that he was going to go find something manly to do, Aang went out to explore the island, which Katara realized was actually flirt with the young girls. Zuko had chosen to stay upstairs in the room they were supposed to stay in for the night. He refused to come down, so Katara decided to let him brood in solitude.

She quickly glanced around the room she was in. It was small, covered in green tapestries and had several small brown pots painted with gold. It was completely different than what she was used to from back home, but she found it wonderful in its own right.

She continued to glance around the room until her gaze stopped on a portrait of a young girl. Her features were round and soft, and her eyes were the only things painted on the portrait. A bright blue that could have mirrored her own.

"Master Oyaji, who is that?" she pointed and asked.

Master Oyaji followed her finger and gripped his teacup tighter. He bowed his head almost morosely and he set the cup down.

"It is said that the Avatar two incarnations ago was here at some point," Master Oyaji said. "We housed Avatar Nikora for three months before she was taken away to the Air Nation to be safely housed until she would be ready to fight the Fire Lord."

Katara bowed her head. "But she never was ready, was she?"

Master Oyaji closed his eyes and drew his lips into a thin line. "I was very young when Avatar Nikora arrived here in Kyoshi. She was twelve, already a powerful waterbending master and seeking asylum from the Fire Nation. I have no doubt that she was ready once she had mastered all four elements."

"But why didn't she defeat the Fire Lord?"

The older man bowed his head and sighed. "She was captured by the Fire Nation and taken as their prisoner. There was word later that she had died, and that the Fire Nation had won the war.

"Some said that the Avatar cycle was destroyed that day, but when Avatar Mayu came we all knew that the Fire Nation was wrong and hope was restored," Master Oyaji said solemnly.

Katara lowered her gaze and stared down at her cup of tea. She knew what had happened to Avatar Mayu, to an extent. The Earth Kingdom Avatar had no doubt perished by the hands of the Fire Nation, like Avatars Aang and Nikora before her.

"Did you ever meet Avatar Mayu?" she asked.

Master Oyaji shook his head and lifted his teacup up to his lips to sip. "No, I never had that great opportunity to meet her. It is said that she fought to protect Ba Sing Se when the Fire Nation attempted to breech its walls and that is where she met the end of her life by the hands of the Dragon of the West."

\-----

Darkness had settled into the naval outpost, and Zhao retreated back to his candlelit quarters. On his way in, he had demanded in passing that he was to have fresh fish for his dinner that night to one of his soldiers standing outside his rooms. The man had bowed before quickly heading to the kitchens to place his commander's orders.

When the fish had arrived an hour later in the hands of the ship's cook, it was steaming and its spicy aroma filled the room, Zhao leaned back in his chair and inhaled gratefully. His belly rumbled and he set aside his quill and closed the cap on his ink.

He scowled when he noticed that Lieutenant Aya had followed the cook into his quarters. Ever since the woman had joined his crew, she had stayed either in her quarters or on deck. He would usually only crossed paths with her when she would go down to the kitchens for a cup of tea in the late afternoon. Her disdain for him was very evident.

"I have heard news that the Avatar's on Kyoshi Island!" the cook carrying his meal suddenly exclaimed.

Zhao clenched his hand tightly into a fist and stood up abruptly. All thoughts on Lieutenant Aya completely left his mind. "What?" he grated out before he charged toward his informant. "What did you say?"

He grabbed a hold of the man before him by the tunic and wrenched him up until they were nose to nose. Sweat beaded on the man's temple and he gulped. Zhao narrowed his eyes.

"Tell me!"

"Uh, Commander Zhao, sir, they say that the Avatar was spotted on Kyoshi Island with the two Water Tribe kids and that Air—!"

The man wasn't able to finish when Zhao's grip on his tunic tightened and he turned around to swing the man out of his presence. The man hit the wall with a dull thud, sliding down before getting back up and running from the room with a panicked expression.

"Why is he there?"

"Yes, Kyoshi has remained largely neutral for the last one hundred years," said a voice from the corner.

Zhao's eyes snapped to the corner, where Aya stood with her back against the wall and her arms crossed over her chest. "It is puzzling as to why the Avatar would travel to a neutral island, but what's even more puzzling is why you neglected to inform the Fire Lord that he is with an airbender. Is there anything else that you're hiding from our lord?"

He narrowed his eyes. "That information wasn't necessary."

The lieutenant pushed off from the wall and circled around him. "I beg to differ, Commander Zhao. Any information on the Air Nation is important to our lord."

Zhao felt his entire body heat up. He took a step forward and punched out toward her. The lieutenant dodged his attack, barely avoiding his fire. When he saw that she came out unscathed, it was like something snapped inside of him. Zhao shot forward, fire starting to gather at his fingertips and spreading down the length of his arm.

He angled the fire to go straight toward Aya's head, but she shifted her stance and slashed her arm. Zhao's fire connected in midair with an unseen force and was deflected into a nearby tapestry. This did not faze him in the slightest, and he took a step back and kicked out. Much like the previous attack, his fire did not hit her. Instead, it was dispersed and fizzled out around her until his flames were nothing.

\-----

It was late at night when Zuko awakened due to Aang's loud snoring. He sighed and glanced around the room, taking note of the sleeping airbender sprawled out on a mat. Katara slept beside Aang, curled onto her side. Beside her should have been Sokka, but his mat was empty and looked completely untouched.

Furrowing his brow, Zuko stood from his bedding and stretched his back until it popped a couple of times. He reached first for his boots and then his spear. He forwent his parka and walked down the stairs of the guesthouse and outside into the cold air.

He took a deep breath once he was outside and felt his body heat up. He leaned his spear up against the building to pull on each of his boots before he grabbed the piece of wood once more and pushed off of the landing of the guesthouse.

He felt like he had walked around the village for what seemed like forever, occasionally whispering Sokka's name here and there, but the boy was nowhere to be found. Sleep was always something important to Sokka, so Zuko couldn't understand why he wasn't back in the guesthouse.

Sokka even missed dinner. Sokka _never_ missed anything to do with food.

_"We should call it a night, you need to get some rest."_

_"No, no, I think I got it this time."_

Zuko paused and peeked into the Kyoshi Warrior's training room. He almost laughed at the sight of Sokka before him, dressed like one of the warriors and maneuvering around the room with one of the metal fans in his hands. Suki stood a little bit before him, watching every one of his movements.

"It takes years of practice before you become good, you know. It took me years" she said. "It won't happen in just one day."

Sokka smirked. "Well, _you're_ not _me_. I am the greatest warrior in the whole South Pole."

Zuko rolled his eyes. He never would have called Sokka the greatest warrior of the Southern Water Tribe, but he would definitely say that he had potential. The title of the greatest warrior was Chief Hakoda, followed by his father.

Suki placed her hands on her hips and smirked back at Sokka. "Wow, do tell me all of your accomplishments, O Great Warrior of the South Pole!"

Her voice was dripping with sarcasm, and Zuko decided that despite their meeting, he rather liked Suki. He was confident that no matter how much training that Sokka received that Suki would absolutely knock him down again and again.


	6. The Avatar

Chapter Six: The Avatar

Sokka arrived just before breakfast was to be cleaned up. He was back in his usual Water Tribe garments, his face mostly void of the paint from the night before. If Zuko squinted, he could see that the younger boy's lips were still stained red and white tinged his hairline.

When Sokka had walked in, Zuko was the only one in the room. Aang and Katara had left earlier to replenish their supplies that they would need for their journey, but Zuko was pretty confident that that meant that Katara was going to do all the shopping as Aang played around with the girls.

Well, Zuko could one hundred percent guarantee that this was happening, as he heard the cheerful glee of young girls from outside followed by Aang's laughter. No doubt he was showing off his airbending tricks like he was before dinner the evening before.

"'Mornin', Zuko," Sokka mumbled as he reached for an iced pastry.

Zuko nodded at him and leaned forward on the table. Zuko would've preferred to have left the confines of the room hours before to sharpen his spear outside or help Katara with the supply shopping because he knew that Aang would slack off, but he felt the need to talk to Sokka about the night before. Mostly because he couldn't let Sokka off the hook for wearing the Kyoshi Warrior paint willingly.

"So…how did you sleep last night?"

Underneath Sokka's eyes were deep bags and purplish bruises that attested to little to no sleep the night before. Sokka mumbled a brief good as hew chewed his food. He lacked the voracious appetite that he usually had in the mornings.

 _He must be really tired,_ Zuko mused.

He leaned back and crossed his arms over his chest. "Was that before or after Suki kicked your a—."

Sokka inhaled the pastry the wrong way and lurched forward, hands placed on the table as he coughed terribly. His eyes were wide as he quickly gulped down the pastry, dislodging it from his throat.

"W-what are you t-talking about? I-I was just teaching Suki a thing or two…y'know, Water Tribe style!"

"In a dress?"

Sokka immediately blushed. "I-It wasn't a dress! It was a warrior's uniform!"

\-----

After Zuko had pushed Sokka into a corner of his nightly activities, the boy had abruptly left their rooms in an embarrassed haste with an armful of pastries. Zuko was leaning back in his soft bedding when he heard the door to their room slide open viciously. He cringed.

Katara walked into the room angrily, a heavy basket clasped tightly in her hands as she slammed it down on the floor beside her things. Zuko found himself very grateful that the buildings were not made of water, for he was confident that she'd have either melted or cracked a few by now.

"What'd Sokka do this time?" he asked, doing his best to act surprised.

Katara sat down quickly and huffed, crossing her arms over her chest tightly. " _Not Sokka,_ " she said. "Aang."

Zuko closed his eyes and sighed. He had already knew what Aang had done, and when he opened his mouth and was about to speak again, Katara cut him off before he even got the chance to get anything out.

"He told me that he'd help me with the shopping! And do you wanna know what he did? He left me!"

Zuko peeked one eye open and glanced over at her. Her cheeks were flushed bright red and her hands were moving around wildly to express her disdain for Aang. Zuko pitied Aang for the next time Katara was around him. He was pretty sure that the young airbender wasn't going to be let off easily.

"As soon as those girls spotted him, he just up and left me to go play with them!"

"Yeah—."

"And then I asked him to help me again because the basket started getting heavy, and you wanna know what he said to me?" Her cheeks were no longer the only part of her flushed. Currently, her entire face was bright red.

"He said that it didn't sound _fun_!" she shrieked.

Zuko sighed and moved to sit up a bit. "Do you need any help or—?"

She whirled around back at him. "NO! I'm done shopping for supplies!"

Narrowing his eyes, Zuko crossed his arms over his chest. "Well, I'm sorry for offering to help!"

It was instant in which Katara reacted. She immediately stiffened and her eyes widened when she realized what all she had said and to whom. She probably realized that she had directed her anger toward the wrong person.

"Zuko, I'm sorry—."

He shook his head. "Forget it," he said.

Standing and brushing off his lap, Zuko cast Katara one last glance as he left the room. Her cheeks were still bright red, but no longer out of rage, but embarrassment. He let the door slide shut behind him as he descended the stairs and into the cool air of Kyoshi.

Much like the day before, the small Kyoshi village was bustling with activity. Merchants walked through the streets in an attempt to sell their wares, farmers arranged their fruits and vegetables in ways to entice customers, and small children ran around the streets.

Zuko found that Aang was also running around the streets with the children.

He simply rolled his eyes at that and continued down the street. He didn't stop until he stood before the training room, where the night before he had seen Sokka covered in paint and in green like the warriors.

He peeked in and watched as Suki led the girls in a stretching exercise. Sokka was in the corner of the training room, pulling his parka off and no doubt about to join in. The entire time Sokka's eyes were on Suki's form, and Zuko filed away Sokka's interest in her for a later date.

Zuko halted his scrutiny when he felt someone watching him. He turned and locked eyes with Wen, who stood outside the training room with a broom in hand. He almost didn't recognize her without her paint.

He slowly approached her, and tried his best to ignore her look of alarm when he got closer. He noticed that her grip on the broom handle had tightened until her knuckles turned white.

"I'm sorry for what happened yesterday. I wasn't thinking, and when I saw you touch Katara…well, out of all of us she hasn't had any warrior training and I just—."

Wen visibly relaxed her grip on the handle and looked down at their feet. She sighed. "You wanted to protect her," she said.

She looked back up. "I should apologise, too. I attacked—."

"You attacked what you thought was a threat to your people," he said. "If I were in the same position as you were, I would've done the same."

Wen's eyes widened as she stilled.

"Sokka and I were tasked with protecting the Southern Water Tribe when the men left to fight in the war," he started. "I would do anything to protect my people."

\-----

Katara was packing her things when she started hearing the frantic voices from below the guesthouse. She put her freshly laundered clothes back in her bag and approached the window to their room. She peeked out, expecting to see the usual hustle and bustle of Kyoshi Island from the day before, but she didn't see what she had expected to see.

The Kyoshi Warriors were leaving their training grounds in full uniform and gear. They moved quickly and Katara knew that they were not training. A new threat had landed on the shores of Kyoshi Island.

Without thinking, Katara reached for her parka and pulled it over her head. She grabbed onto her water skin and looped it over her shoulder and ran from their room.

_"The Fire Nation!"_

_"Kyoshi has kept out of the war for the last one hundred years, and when those kids showed up so did the Fire Nation! I don't think it's a coincidence!"_

_"The Kyoshi Warriors will protect us, don't you worry!"_

Katara glanced around. Everyone was moving quickly, closing up their market stalls and racing into their homes. There was no longer children out to play, and the air lacked the carefree glee as before.

Aang stood ramrod straight ahead, his hands in fists at his sides. Katara swallowed any sense of anger she had previously had toward him and approached.

"What are we going to do?" she asked.

Aang looked over at her. "I don't know…I thought Kyoshi was safe from the Fire Nation."

She nodded. "Because they kept Avatar Nikora here, right?"

Aang nodded. "Yeah, but I guess I was wrong this time."

He turned back to her. "I need to get my staff, but we also need to get out of here."

Her heart lurched in her chest. "Wait, just leave? Aang, we can't—!"

"They want Zuko," he said. "I have a feeling it's the same guy as before and he'll leave them alone and follow us if we leave on Appa," he explained.

"But—!"

"It's the only way!" he said. "I don't like it either, but we have to leave. Where's Zuko and Sokka?"

"Sokka left with Suki and Zuko wandered off—."

"We have to find Zuko before the Fire Nation finds him! But first, we need to put our stuff back on Appa."

Katara was grateful that Aang had sobered up and helped her. He carried the heaviest part of the load to Appa, while Katara just carried the bags of clothing that they had brought to the guesthouse. He had left his staff behind in their rooms, saying that he would go back for it later for he was unable to carry the heaviest loads and his staff all at once.

This was one of the seldom times that Aang had ever appeared serious, and this concerned Katara greatly. Aang was never serious, except when he was talking about how Zuko was the Avatar.

They arrived in a small clearing where Appa stood. Immediately they set to securing the bags of clothing and supplies on his back, binding them down. Katara's hands started to shake at the thought of the Fire Nation on the shores of Kyoshi Island.

 _Is it right to flee,_ she thought.

"I'm going back to get my staff! Stay here with Appa!" She nodded.

Aang left the small clearing and headed back toward the direction of the guesthouse. Katara watched him go, her hand lovingly brushing against Appa's nose. Appa groaned, and Katara smiled and whispered some words of encouragement to the great bison.

"Going somewhere soon?" a woman's voice said.

Katara stiffened and a shiver ran down the length of her spine. She turned around and saw a woman standing on a lower tree branch. She wore Fire Nation armour, but it was much lighter compared to what she'd seen that man in the South Pole wear.

Drawing in a deep breath in an effort to calm herself, Katara braced her hand on the water skin resting near her hip. The woman's eyes barely slipped downward, but her face was void of fear.

"Are you going to offer me a drink? Well, I must say that I'm not too thirsty—."

The woman wasn't able to finish her speech. Appa slammed his tail down and a gust of wind was aimed at the woman. She twirled and the air moved around her instead of directly hitting her. Katara's heart sped up in her chest and she grasped onto her water skin tightly.

Appa moved quickly. He turned back and snapped at the woman, but she shot forward at an incredible speed that Katara barely registered the movement.

She shifted her footing on the ground and popped open the top of her water skin. Katara pulled the water toward her from the water skin and mustered up all of her concentration, she shot it forward.

Katara's heart sped up almost gleefully when the water went straight before her, but seized when the woman parried her assault gracefully and continued her fast approach.

It seemed like an instant before the woman was beside her, Katara could see her smirk grace her lips and a sense of cold satisfaction in her eyes.

"A waterbender, huh? I have been greatly misinformed."

Katara's eyes widened and she tried to reach out for the snow that littered the ground, but the woman grabbed onto her wrist and twisted it behind her back. It twinged painfully and Katara couldn't help the noise she made from the back of her throat.

"I'm looking for the Avatar." The woman leaned in. "He's rumoured to be traveling with an airbender and two Water Tribe children."

"I don't know anything," she huffed.

The woman's grip on her wrist tightened and she jerked. This time, Katara felt pain travel from her wrist past her elbow to her shoulder. She cried out and her knees almost buckled beneath her.

Katara reached out with her left hand and pulled some snow toward her. She felt almost relieved when it collided with her body, but that was just it. Only snow collided with her body, not sharp ice daggers like she had hoped for.

Katara felt her body be abruptly pushed away from the woman and thrown to the ground. She landed awkwardly on her left side, her cheek scratching the ground below her. As quick as she could, Katara rolled over just in time to see the woman lift her arm in what appeared would be a wide arc.

She was about to shut her eyes when a bright orange flash shot past her. It paused momentarily, and Aang came into her view. For the first time that day, Katara felt relief at the sight of Aang.

Aang kicked out a gust of air toward the woman, who hadn't expected his entrance. She was pushed back only a small amount before she regained her ground, spun, and shot a blast of air back at him.

_She's an airbender?_

Katara started to pick herself up from the ground when the woman's blast hit Aang directly. The sound that he made was almost sickening, and Katara could have sworn that she heard a crack when the air hit his ribs.

"AANG!" she cried.

Aang landed atop some bushes, dazed and confused. Katara scrambled to get to him, her eyes quickly evaluating over him to see if anything else was wrong other than the likely broken ribs.

"Aang! Are you—?"

She stiffened when she felt the presence of the woman behind her. Her breath caught in her throat and she leaned over Aang to prevent her from doing him any harm. The woman before her appeared to hesitate.

A loud blasting sound was heard clearly through the silence of the forest. Katara faintly registered the heat of a flame as it passed by her face and narrowly missed the woman in red.

The woman's eyes widened and she glanced past Katara.

"Oh, you must be the Avatar," the woman said.

\-----

_I need to get her attention off of Aang and Katara. It's the only way._

The thought of firebending left an acrid taste in his mouth. He knew that if he wanted to protect them, he had to firebend against the soldier-woman.

He was glad that his attack, or diversion, took her mind off of Aang and Katara for her attention was now on him. He had her complete undivided attention, and that was something he wished he didn't have at that moment.

"Oh, you must be the Avatar," she had said simply.

Cursing himself for leaving his spear back at the guesthouse, Zuko took a fighting stance. He thought of himself as mediocre at best when it came to hand-to-hand combat.

Out of the corner of his eye, he watched Katara scramble away from the woman and toward Aang. Seemingly unbothered by her hostage's getaway, his opponent kept her attention on him completely.

"I didn't think that you would come to me," she said.

Zuko pulled his hands into fists and charged. He would have preferred for his opponent to make the first move, but knew she would not. This woman was patient. That much was evident by the way she held herself before him.

A boomerang soared through the air, almost slicing past the woman's face. She shot herself backward until she landed on a low hanging tree branch once more. Zuko watched as she furrowed her brow and looked around the clearing for the source of the weapon.

Zuko felt a mixture of relief and fear when Sokka emerged from the bushes. He had his club raised up above his head and he roared at the woman, who easily sidestepped him. Sokka spun around and launched himself back toward her, but she was able to avoid his club thrice before she grabbed onto his wrist and spun him around.

Sokka was thrown across the clearing and narrowly avoided a collision with a tree. He was about to get back up when a flash of green sped past Zuko. There was the sound of metal hitting metal, and Zuko turned in time to see Suki's feet stumble to the ground after the woman pushed her away.

"We've no business with Kyoshi," the woman said. "Leave now and you—."

Refusing to let the woman finish, Suki shot forward once more. Her hands were tightly clutching onto her golden fans as she spun around and aimed her weapon toward the woman's neck. The woman parried her swiftly, catching the fan on the metal wrapped around her wrist and spinning to kick at Suki.

Suki landed on her feet this time gracefully and was immediately in another stance. "That's a lie! You brought Kyoshi into this when you docked your ship."

The Kyoshi Warrior dashed toward her opponent, who spun out of the way almost delicately. Suki kept moving after her, trying to instill damage upon her opponent to prevent her from doing any more harm.

It was incredible to watch. Both women were equally skilled in their chosen forms of combat. The Fire Nation woman only appeared to have two advantages: airbending and experience.

They were moving at an incredible speed, and had Zuko not been paying attention to their movements, he would have completely missed each and every one. For every blow Suki attempted to land, the woman parried. For every blast from her hands, Suki sidestepped.

The fight wore on for several minutes before the back of Suki's foot caught onto an exposed tree root. It had been hidden by the snow and could not have been foreseen.

Suki fell backward, her arms moving to catch herself in a way that she would be able to stay in the fight. The woman in red took advantage of her stumble, and shot forward toward her opponent.

Zuko did the only thing that he could at where he stood. He punched out a flame in the direction of the woman in red. She stopped her assault on Suki and turned to look at him.

At that moment, Suki attempted to stand, but was unable to. Out of the corner of his eye, he watched as Sokka crawled over to her aid.

He knew that he had to get the woman's attention fully on him. He wanted to yell out for everyone to leave him, to get on Appa and fly away to somewhere safe, but he knew that the woman would easily dispatch him and follow.

The only thing he could do was punch out a few flames toward her, which she deflected with a blasts of her own air. By her skill and experience, Zuko knew that he would not be able to hold his own from her for long.

It was inevitable when he felt his feet get knocked out from under him. His face connected with the dirt of the ground. He turned around and sat up, curling his lips at his opponent. He glanced around at the clearing. Aang still lay in the bushes, his arm wrapped around his waist. Sokka held Suki in his arms, her ankle twisted at an odd angle. Sokka appeared unaware of the blood escaping his nostrils and pooling on his parka.

"Now, what are you going to do?"

The woman had Katara in front of her as if she were her shield. Katara's arm was twisted painfully, and she was not able to hide the look of pain that crossed her features.

Zuko felt his entire body heat up. He felt everything slip away from him, and he reached out to grasp onto it, but failed. It was like he was pushed back into the recesses of his mind and another power took over his body.

It consumed him. Zuko felt his body become engulfed by flames as it shot forward. The woman's eyes widened, and this time it was in fear.

Zuko could briefly recall his fist punching forward, and a powerful ball of fire left him in a rush that would have destroyed anything in its path. In the midst of his flames, they swirled around as they were missing their target.

_What is this? STOP!_

He tried to pull his back, to stop the flames from leaving his fist, but he was unable to extinguish them. He cried out, but no sound left his lips.

"I never would have thought that the Fire Lord's mongrel would need my help," a voice called out.

And just like that, the flames stopped coming from him. They continued to rush forward, taking purchase onto nearby greenery and leaving nothing in return.

Zuko felt his body turn around completely. Behind him stood the man that had captured him in the South Pole, and who had tried to kill him for fighting back. He appeared to be good as new from their fight.

When the man saw him, he stiffened briefly before he relaxed. He laughed out and smirked, then got into a ready offensive stance.

"So, you really are the Avatar, boy. I guess the airbender was right."

_What?_

The man punched out and a ball of flame moved right toward him. Zuko would have dodged him, and tried to, but both of his hands reached out and brushed it out of the way as if it were nothing. The flames dissipated easily on the ground and Zuko felt his body take a couple of careful steps forward.

His body was moving on its own. It rarely sidestepped the man's attacks and met each and every one with a blow more powerful than his opponents. The man seemed neither worried nor phased by him, but rather gleefully ecstatic.

"ZHAO! STAND DOWN!" He briefly registered the woman call to the man.

Zhao didn't listen to her, for he launched himself forward and shot a large flame toward him again. He simply deflected it this time like it was nothing, and he felt his body take one step forward and slam his foot down.

"COMMANDER!"

Instantly, the earth rose beneath him at an incredible rate. The man's eyes briefly widened in realization when he was knocked to the side. The woman, now standing in his line of sight, still maintained an offensive stance.

"We stand down, Avatar," she said.

The man on the ground whirled around, his eyes wide with fury. "NO! LIEUTENANT AYA, I—!"

Flames were licking at the Zhao's fingertips as he started to move forward toward her. She sidestepped him and swiped, nearly propelling him into a nearby tree.

Zuko had hoped that that alone would have been able to force the man to stop his attack, but the man stood. His gait was staggering and it was like a burst of flame left him and went toward the woman.

Lieutenant Aya simply launched herself in the air and punched out toward Commander Zhao. He sidestepped and kicked out two flames toward her. They fanned out around her, and it looked as if all of her concentration was on preventing herself from being burned by Zhao's attack.

She landed clumsily on the ground, and that gave Commander Zhao enough time to punch out toward her.

Much like before, Zuko had no control over his body. He felt it move and the slight rumble of earth followed. A large column erected before the woman in red. She glanced back at him, dazed.

He had no idea why he saved her, or why whatever was controlling him saved her. She was the enemy. She was not an ally.

Commander Zhao moved his attentions back onto him, and he shot forward toward Zuko once more. Out of the corner of one eye, Zuko saw the lieutenant woman dart from behind the earth column toward him in a vain effort to stop the commander.

"ZHAO! STA—!"

Zuko felt his body take a deep breath, and a hot flame erupted from his body. It blasted out, knocking into two bodies barely protected by a shield made of air. The flames completely destroyed what was left of everything around him and he could faintly register the sound of a scream.

All he could do was squeeze his eyes shut and scream. He wanted to kneel, cover his eyes and scream.

 _I-I'm a monster,_ he thought.

 _"You are not a monster,"_ said a voice.

He opened his eyes and saw a woman standing before him. It was a familiar woman in green.

 _"Take a deep breath, and ease yourself out of this. All is not gone,"_ she said.

Zuko took a deep, but shaky, breath. When he opened his eyes, the commander and the lieutenant were gone. Aang, who was favouring his right side, was standing in front of Sokka and Suki. The three of them were covered in soot.

He staggered where he stood. Everything in the clearing had been reduced to a pile of ash, and Zuko felt his heart seize in his chest. Everything may not appear like what had happened to the Southern Water Tribe all those years ago, but the smell certainly reminded him. It was the acrid smell of smoke.

He felt a hand wrap around his upper arm and squeeze. "Zuko."

Katara's voice calmed him somehow. His heart rate returned to normal, and he stole a glance at her.

Covered in soot and ash, Katara stood beside him. Her body appeared to be free of burns, and that thought was barely enough to placate him. Her expression, though, was something that worried him. She appeared to be almost hesitant around him and afraid of what he could do.

 _I did this,_ he thought, _I destroyed this clearing._

"Zuko," she repeated.

"I-I really am the Avatar."

Katara nodded and her grip on his arm tightened.

"We should go."

Aang spoke from where he sat in the bushes. His arm was clutching at his side and he had a grimace on his face. "The Fire Nation won't stay here if they know you're not here," he said.

"They'll follow us," Zuko said.

Aang nodded. "It's the only way to get them out of Kyoshi. We need to drop Suki off at the village, and then we need to leave."

He peered over at Katara, who only nodded once more. He glanced over at Sokka, who was helping Suki stand on one leg.

Sokka appeared grim and conflicted. His grip was tight on Suki and hers him. Zuko could only give a sign of affirmation before everyone moved to where Appa had taken refuge.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! I'm very sorry it took me some time to finish this. I'm currently at university and up to my neck in projects and research. Chapter 7 will hopefully be out next weekend! Thanks for reading!


	7. The Air Nation

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN: This chapter (at the end) has slight depictions of violence and physical abuse! It's at the very end with Zhao.The tags will be updated accordingly.

Chapter Seven: The Air Nation

It took them almost four days to completely lose the Fire Nation. They were almost completely in the air the entire time, which gave Zuko ample time to think about what had happened on Kyoshi.

A storm had occurred the third night, the clouds completely hiding the moon giving them full coverage. Zuko had wondered how Appa could see in the complete darkness, but he decided to trust the bison.

On the fourth day, they flew over a vast mountain range, the Kolau, according to Aang. On this day, Aang lowered Appa into the steep canyons. It would make it nearly impossible for the Fire Nation to spot them now in the cover amongst the mountains.

When it was midday, Appa landed at the bottom of a deep canyon. Aang didn't make a move to climb off of the back of the bison's head, and Zuko assumed that he was still sore from the fight between Commander Zhao and Lieutenant Aya.

"Why are we stopping here? There's no village to restock—!"

"We wouldn't have to restock if you hadn't eaten all of the food that I stocked up on back in Kyoshi!" Katara said to her brother.

Sokka sulked in Appa's saddle. He crossed his arms over his chest and murmured something about how he was a growing warrior.

"We're going to the Air Nation," Aang said quietly.

Both of the siblings stopped and glanced over at Aang. The airbender kept his eyes trained forward and he flicked Appa's reins to lead the bison onward. Zuko noted the tension in the young airbender's shoulders. It was akin to how he had felt whenever he had done something wrong as a child.

"Your family has no idea that you left to find me, did they?" Zuko asked.

Aang stiffened and slowly turned his head back around at them. He almost looked ashamed. "I didn't tell them, no."

Katara leaned forward, her braid flipping over her shoulder. "Wait, Aang. You didn't tell your family that you were leaving?"

Aang shook his head. "N-no?"

Zuko groaned inwardly while Sokka did so audibly.

"I knew I'd have to go back home eventually, I-I just didn't think it'd happen so soon," the airbender said glumly.

Zuko saw Sokka shrug his shoulders out of the corner of his eye. "Big deal, so you left home. What's the worst that could happen?"

Aang's shoulder stiffened and he turned back toward them. His brow was furrowed, and Zuko was stunned by the seriousness written across Aang's features.

"I've never left home before! We're not allowed to leave home until we're at least sixteen! And that's with permission from our leader! I'm thirteen and I left without permission!" Aang moved forward. "I'm trying not to think about what the worst that could happen is."

"But Aang, you left your home to look for the Avatar…" Katara began. "And—."

"It doesn't matter. I left home underage without permission. I was hoping that I'd get to see more things before I went back home."

"This-this is NOT A VACATION!" Sokka sputtered.

Zuko narrowed his eyes and did his best to stamp down on the sense of annoyance that filled him.

For the remainder of their trek through the canyons, Zuko had his arms crossed over his chest and sat slouched down in Appa's saddle. Sokka later mirrored him directly across, but his eyes bore into the back of Aang's head as the young airbender navigated with expert precision.

Zuko was shocked that within two hours of their journey, he saw began to see evidence that they were approaching a civilization of sorts. They passed by a scarecrow, dusted in white and surrounded by snow.

The further they went in, Zuko watched as men dressed in green shot out from behind frosted boulders. Some held spears, some stood in a bending stance, and they stopped once they locked eyes with Aang atop Appa's head.

Zuko was rather surprised when they abruptly bowed before the bison.

Next they had to move through a large tunnel. Appa groaned and tried to pull away, but with a soothing pat from Aang and some choice words, the bison reluctantly continued onward.

"Hey, Zuko? Could you maybe give us a little light?" Sokka asked.

Zuko didn't even get the chance to respond to Sokka, for he heard the distinct slapping noise of Katara's palm smacking against the side of Sokka's head. "I didn't deserve that," Sokka said.

It took them nearly thirty minutes, Zuko estimated, to move through the tunnel. Zuko was relieved to see the light at the other end and to breathe in the fresh air. Immediately outside the tunnel was what appeared to be an old farmhouse with a barn and stables. The first ones that they saw were rather small, for the more petite animals, Zuko guessed.

They left Appa near a massive stable. Two wide-eyed young men clambered from where they had previously sat in the cold stables in order to grasp at Appa's reins. They looked up at Aang almost in awe, but Zuko could detect a hint of worry in their eyes as well.

"Aang! Where have you been?" asked one with his hair tied in a topknot.

"Yeah! Your grandfather has been sending out men since you left!" the other announced.

Aang blanched and held up his hands to calm them. "Heh-heh, I just went on a little trip to the Southern Air Temple…."

"And who're these guys?"

Aang scratched the back of his head nervously, messing up his already untidy hair. "Uh, I went a little too south and wound up in the Southern Water Tribe."

"You forgot a map, didn'tcha?"

Sokka moved forward and looped his arm around Aang's neck. "Oh, did he ever! We found him floating on in the middle of the ocean! Completely lost!"

The two boys looked at each other and started to laugh. Tears pricked the corners of their eyes and Zuko was thankful that they didn't know that he was the Avatar. It brought back a sense of old normalcy that he was used to…despite being so far away from the South Pole.

\-----

The Air Nation was a much different place than Zuko thought it would ever be. Unlike what he had heard about the previous Air Nomads inhabiting the Air Temples, he was surprised to see the daily life of the Air Nation to be…completely ordinary. It was almost similar to what he had seen in the markets of Kyoshi Island.

It appeared the farmers tried to sell their wares whilst cloth merchants displayed their bright green and yellow fabrics for all to see. Zuko wondered how cloth merchants made their way into the Air Nation, a supposedly secret haven to the last of the airbenders.

Though, the only not so normal thing that Zuko noted was the sight of young children running amongst the crowds. He faintly heard that "Aang's back!" in frantic whispers coming from them. Word had most likely spread from the stables about Aang's homecoming.

Aang led them through the heart of the market. They continued on until they stopped before a building made completely of earth. It was littered generously with snow, but underneath the white Zuko could faintly make out a type of undergrowth that grew on the building.

The young airbender took a deep breath as he stood outside. "Only Zuko can come in with me right now," he said.

Katara and Sokka could only nod as they stared around in awe.

The building itself was a single, large room. In the back was a dais with four cushions sitting side by side. Curtains of brightly coloured silk framed the dais, and the only light present was the flickering of four candles. On each cushion, knelt an elderly man. Three of which immediately glanced at Aang and frowned.

One of them was completely bald, and wore a necklace with three pendants in the middle. Each pendant had a drawn symbol that represented the Air Nomads. He looked as if he was the only one who belonged in this room permanently. Zuko blanched.

_This is their leader?_

Aang bowed his head respectfully before the man. "It's good to see you, Grandfather," he said.

The elderly man's eyes narrowed and gestured for Aang to stand straight. When his grandson did as requested, he glanced his eyes over Zuko and he had to fight the desire to look away.

"This is not a social visit, Aang. You left, you deliberately—!"

Aang's hands clenched into fists. "I left to find the Avatar! And I've found him!"

Aang turned back at him and pointed. The four elderly men on the dais looked over at him. They appeared shocked at the sight of him, the supposed Fire Nation Avatar dressed in the clothes of Water Tribe.

"And how are you so sure—?"

"Zuko went into the Avatar state four days ago." Aang looked up at the elders and narrowed his eyes. "You can verify this if the statues of the Avatars glowed," he said.

The bald man drew his lips into a thin line and glanced over at the man on his right. The man wore a ghastly bright purple and a weird sort of headdress. His skin was tanned and his eyes were green. The man smiled.

"So this is what that was all about. Well that's good news, Tenzin! We got our hands on the Avatar before the Fire Nation!"

Tenzin, the bald man, took in a deep sigh and looked back at his grandson. Aang didn't falter under his gaze, but continued to stand up straight.

"I brought the Avatar to the Air Nation, where he should be."

Tenzin narrowed his eyes before he softened them and deflated into his cushion. He shakily ran a hand over his face and sighed. "The Avatar should have always been here," he said.

"Oh, don't be dramatic," the man in the ghastly clothing spat. "The Fire Navy would've never been able to make it into this mountain range," he said. "You're beating yourself up for nothing."

The elderly man shot a look over to his right. "The Air Nation has been tasked with protecting and training the Avatar since—!"

"Your father could not have foreseen the future, Tenzin," said the man in purple. "If he had been able to, the Fire Nation would not be our enemy any longer."

The man in purple turned directly to Zuko and smiled. "Tell me, Avatar Zuko, what would you like to have for supper tonight?"

_Did he just ask…what I think he just asked?_

"I—."

"Oh, we'll just have what I want, then! I've been craving some roast chicken for some time now! Tenzin, do you have any chickens around?"

"King Bumi!" the man on Tenzin's left exclaimed. "Now is not the time to be discussing supper!"

"Anytime is a good time to be discussing about supper! It needs time to be prepared, see. And especially because tonight's to be a feast!"

The man on Tenzin's left was fuming, and he dug his fingers into the cushions. Zuko recognized the man as Water Tribe. He almost didn't see it, as the man wore what many of the other men outside in the marketplace wore.

"Tell me, Master Pakku, would the Northern Water Tribe pay tribute to the Avatar if he appeared in their city?" asked King Bumi. "The Avatar ought to be a very welcome guest no matter where he or she goes."

Master Pakku narrowed his eyes at the king. "The Avatar would immediately be briefed about what he is to—!"

"The Avatar is a sixteen-year-old boy, Master Pakku!" King Bumi mused. "Tell me, at sixteen, would you have been able to stomach a briefing with a bunch of old men that you hardly knew?"

Zuko glanced from the bickering men and Tenzin to the man who said beside Master Pakku. He stood ramrod straight, but his eyes were downward. He appeared as if he definitely did not belong atop the dais, as he wore tattered black robes. His hair was a messy white, and he had two scars over his eye.

To sum up what he appeared to be feeling on the dais, it was angry.

"Master Jeong Jeong! Will you be able to teach the Avatar firebending?"

The man beside Master Pakku looked up, and for the first time Zuko got a better look at him from where he stood. The twin scars around his eye were the only ones on his face, but Zuko also noted something else: his eyes were amber of the Fire Nation.

Zuko felt his blood run cold and he had to fight every impulse in his body to not take a step back.

The man looked from King Bumi, who had spoken, and then toward Zuko. His eyes were narrowed and Zuko felt as if the man was dissecting every part of his being where he stood. "That depends on him," he said.

Zuko let out a breath of air that he hadn't realized that he had been holding. He glanced back up toward where Tenzin knelt. The man before him showed little to no emotion on his face, but King Bumi appeared ecstatic.

"Excellent! This definitely calls for a feast!"

\-----

Katara had been stunned when six people moved from the building. First was a man clothed in bright purple and a hideous headdress, second was a bald man with a pendant around his neck, third was a man with bright blue eyes and white hair, and fourth was a man clothed entirely in black. The fifth was Zuko, who trailed behind the man in black. Sixth was Aang, his head was held low and his eyes at his feet.

Aang merely mumbled something under his breath before he raced off.

"What's with him?" Sokka asked.

She watched him go, concerned for her friend. "I hope he's all right," she said.

There wasn't any time for her to wonder about Aang's wellbeing, for the man in purple quickly turned and grasped her and Sokka by the wrists. He tugged them close until the three of their faces were all close together.

"We plan on having a feast with roast chicken tonight, is that fine with you two?" he asked and cackled.

Katara glanced out of the corner of her eye at Sokka, who was doing the same. His eyebrow quirked up and Katara could only nod.

"Splendid! I'll let everyone know that we'll be having roast chicken for supper!"

The man in purple snorted and slapped them both on the back hard. He walked off in the opposite direction of Aang and Katara shot a look over at Zuko, who looked just as confused as she felt.

"Who was that?" she whispered to him.

He sighed. "King Bumi of Omashu."

Her eyes widened.

_Oh, La! I was just in the presence of a KING! And I didn't even know!_

"Huh, I feel like I could've guessed that with a hint. The outfit kinda gave it away that he had money," Sokka said.

They were ushered into a great underground hall, lit with candelabras all over. Toward the back of the hall stood a dais, where three of the four older men sat. Zuko was pulled away from her and Sokka to sit up beside them, and Katara could practically feel Zuko's discomfort at being placed beside men he didn't know.

King Bumi eventually strolled up to sit beside Zuko and, whom Katara later discovered to be called Tenzin. Tenzin minded his own business, watching over the crowd of people walking into the vast underground hall. King Bumi immediately appeared to be trying to tell Zuko a joke, one of which was completely lost to him.

In the dinning room, Aang was nowhere to be found.

Something that was called a roast chicken was placed in front of her, and she leaned forward and inhaled its pleasing aroma. Never in her life had she ever seen a roast chicken, and she found that she was rather excited to try it. Beside her, Sokka was practically drooling over his plate.

"Oh, man! These people do know how to treat a Warrior of the Southern Water Tribe!"

Katara crossed her arms over her chest. "I'm pretty sure they're trying to treat Zuko, Sokka."

Sokka stole a glance at her and frowned. "Let me have this, Katara."

She couldn't help but smile at her brother, and then she turned back to look at the meal before her. It wasn't just a dish with roast chicken, but also with cooked peas and carrots. She had learned about the vegetables while she was shopping in Kyoshi's marketplace. She even bought some of them, and found that she rather preferred the peas to the carrots.

"Well—."

Katara couldn't even finish her sentence, because she knew that Sokka wouldn't be listening to her words. He was already shoveling the roast chicken into his mouth greedily, and at that moment, Katara wondered if he ever retained any of the manners that he was taught as a child.

Swatting her brother on the arm and being rewarded with an annoyed glance, Katara turned away from him and started to pick at her meal.

"—Masters Pakku of the Northern Water Tribe and Jeong Jeong!"

Katara paused and glanced back at the dais. _A master from the North Pole?_

Her fingers curled into a fist atop the table and she glanced at her brother. Sokka was too busy chewing on a bone, doing his very best to get every piece of the meat.

She turned and grasped onto his arm, and he abruptly dropped the bone back onto his plate. "Sokka! I may have found a master to teach me how to bend!"

Sokka glanced from her and turned to look at the dais where the men sat. "What's a waterbender from the North Pole doing here?" he asked.

_I don't care! He's here and I'm here!_

She smiled brightly, her grip tightening on his arm. "I'm going to ask him tonight if I can be his student! Or-or maybe I should just wait until tomorrow morning, I haven't bathed since we were on Kyoshi…."

"Master Jeong Jeong will begin to teach the Avatar firebending at dawn," Tenzin paused, allowing room for those in the room to applaud. "And once that is completed, he will continue to stay here to learn airbending."

She let go of her brother and applauded along with the audience. She glanced around the dining room until she locked eyes with a boy a little older than her, his eyes a vibrant green that matched Aang's. He was handsome, she noted. His hair was slightly longer than Aang's and his skin more tanned.

He winked playfully at her and she flushed.

For one of the first times in her life, Katara was thankful that Sokka paid attention only to the food before him. Never had she had the courtesy of having a boy show her any attention, and she had a distinct feeling that Sokka would grow very upset and bring Zuko into this.

She looked away from the boy and back up to the dais where Zuko sat. She had expected him to be happy, like the rest of the room, and was surprised to see his eyes downcast. The food on his plate looked like, for the most part, untouched.

"Zuko's not eating," she said.

"Didya 'ay 'omting?"

She turned to look at her brother once more. He was chewing rapidly as if he'd been wrongfully starved for all of his fifteen years. Narrowing her eyes at her brother again, Katara swatted him on the arm.

"I 'idn't deserve 'at!"

She scowled and crossed her arms over her chest. She glanced back over at the dais and watched as Zuko fiddled around with the goblet that was placed before him. It was probably filled with wine, as she and Sokka had been offered some earlier. Sokka had accepted it, but decided upon her first big gulp that it was disgusting. It would also explain why Zuko hadn't so much as taken more than two sips throughout the entire meal.

"Are you travelling with the Avatar?"

Katara turned to look at the source of the voice. Behind her stood the boy that had winked at her earlier. He was tall, and she found herself coming to rest at his shoulder, and she liked that. She could feel her cheeks begin to heat up.

"I'm Gyatso, I heard your name was Katara?" Gyatso said.

Katara felt her cheeks heat up and she nodded quickly. "Yes! And this is my brother—!"

Gyatso smiled. "Sokka, Warrior of the Southern Water Tribe! I'm very glad that Aang found the Avatar in the South Pole."

It registered immediately within Katara that Gyatso had an amazing smile.

_Oh, La! He's Aang's brother!_

\-----

He was given his own room for the night. It was very nice, and Zuko felt that it was familiar to him despite never having set foot in it before. It was connected to a bathroom, complete with a large tub where he could bathe.

Zuko took his time in the bath, letting the dirt and grime from riding on Appa the past four days wash off of his body. He left the room with a towel wrapped loosely around his hips, another dabbing at his wet hair.

While he had been in the bath, someone had been in his rooms to set his bag on the bed and start a fire in the hearth. Zuko clenched his hand tighter around the towel and moved to sit before the fireplace, his eyes watching the dancing flames. It was only then when Zuko felt his body let out a big sigh.

_We're safe here. No one has ever been able to find the Air Nation since its creation. It's protected by the Kolau Mountains, and Omashu is close by with King Bumi's soldiers._

He stared at the fire in the hearth. It flickered within the fireplace, almost as if it were dancing around the burning logs. Its light pushed the shadows out from behind every object in the room, dancing and bobbing along the walls. It had a soothing effect on him, and Zuko leaned his back into the foot of the bed and shut his eyes.

_I start my training tomorrow with a master…._

Opening his eyes, Zuko reached his palm out toward the flames. He contracted his hand and willed the flames to do as his fingers did, but nothing happened. Their dance continued undisturbed as if his presence meant nothing.

There was a knock at the door and Zuko quickly got to his feet. He felt the towel slipping, and he had to grasp onto it tightly to keep it from falling to the floor.

"Hold on a minute!" he said, searching for a pair of trousers that he had had in his bag.

He found them and threw the towel aside as he jerked his pants up onto his body. Zuko nearly tripped over the towel as he walked over to the door, mentally cursing himself for not throwing it onto the bed rather than the floor.

When he wrenched the door open, he was surprised to see Katara on the other side of the door. Her eyes immediately dropped from his face down to his chest, which he realized, was the first time she'd ever seen it bare for non-medicinal purposes.

Katara blushed a fierce scarlet and pushed a bowl into his hand. "I-I brought you something! I noticed that you didn't eat anything at the feast!"

He felt the heat rise in his cheeks as well, and he glanced down at the bowl in his hand. It looked and smelled like leftover roast chicken and vegetables from the feast in a creamy broth. And it smelled divine.

"T-thank you," he said.

He stole a glance at her. She too had recently bathed, for he could note the dampness of her hair and fresh clothes. Katara smelled of flowers.

_Ask her to stay, ask her to stay, ASK HER TO STAY!_

_NO, YOU IDIOT, THIS IS KATARA!_

Zuko blinked and did his best to smile at Katara. She looked shocked and she looked away.

He coughed. "So, uh, d'you think that Master Pakku will help you with your waterbending?" he asked as he turned away from the door and walked further into his room.

He had left the door open so that she knew it was all right to follow him.

"Uh, I thought it'd be best to talk to him in the morning about it," she said. "He did want to retire quickly after the feast. And I really need to take a bath."

"Yeah, you smell a lot better now!"

Zuko immediately cursed himself inwardly when he saw her eyes widen. Hurt flashed across her eyes and Zuko felt terrible. The flames in the hearth seemed to quicken their dance across the logs, as if taking glee in his embarrassment.

"I-I mean, you didn't smell that bad before!"

"I'm going to bed!"

She turned away from him to leave. He reached out for her, about to ask her to stay, but he stopped himself. She was already gone before he could try again.

"Why did I say that?"

He looked down at the creamy soup in his hand and sat at the foot of his bed. He spooned it into his mouth and swallowed. It was probably the greatest thing he had tasted since he last had his mother's home cooking, and that was saying something – Kyoshi's sweet pastries had been fantastic.

The bowl was nearly licked clean in less than five minutes, and Zuko was surprised by how hungry he was. He set the bowl down on a small table beside his bed and crawled underneath the blankets.

Once Zuko's head hit the pillow, he found sleep very hard for him to grasp. For the first time since they arrived in the Air Nation, his mind wasn't on the fact that he was the Avatar or that he was to begin firebending training in the morning, but it was on Katara. And that blush that crept across her cheeks to the tops of her ears. And how he was absolutely terrible at talking.

_It shouldn't be that hard to talk to her, I've known her her entire life._

\-----

Zhao leaned back on his bed and let his gaze flicker over to the foot of his bed. The airbending scum sat hunched over, her petite frame wrapped in a crimson cloak. He could barely make out in the firelight the new burns on her wrist and the back of her neck.

He smirked. She deserved every blemish on her skin, for she had interrupted his fight with the Avatar on Kyoshi Island. If she hadn't interfered, they would be on their way back to the Fire Nation. By the end of this week, he would have been able to deliver the Avatar to Fire Lord Ozai's feet. The promotion to admiral would have been his and the war would have been won.

"Leave me," he rasped.

She looked over at him. There was a fire in her green eyes, and he found that to be her only redeeming quality. Her grip tightened on the cloak and she wrapped it tighter around her body.

"Gladly," she said.

He lazily watched her leave, noting with satisfaction that she favoured her right side. It delighted him to see her that way as she left his rooms. He refused to let himself find her attractive, for she was filthy and below him despite their union.

Every time the men on the ship whispered about her beauty, the need to mar her skin grew more intense. He left her face free of burns and bruises, and he took enjoyment out of knowing that beneath her clothing, Lieutenant Aya was covered in burn scars from his fire.


	8. The Masters

Chapter Eight: The Masters

It was dawn when Zuko stood opposite of Master Jeong Jeong. The man stood ramrod straight with his arms clasped behind his back and a scowl on his scarred face.

"You're late," he said.

"But you said to be here at dawn! I'm on time!"

Master Jeong Jeong turned, his back to Zuko. "On time is before dawn," he said. "You arrived at dawn."

Zuko grit his teeth and clenched his fists. He felt his inner temperature begin to rise, and he did his best to clamp down on that feeling. It would not due to burn one's firebending master…if such a thing were possible.

"Wide stance."

"Huh?"

Master Jeong Jeong turned around abruptly. "Wide stance," he repeated.

Crouching a little, Zuko got into a wide stance. The firebending master walked around him, taking in every bit of Zuko and completely dissecting his form to insure that he was correct.

He was able to barely detect a satisfactory nod coming from his master.

"Fire is alive. It will breathe, and it will grow. It is essential to be able to control your breathing, Avatar."

Furrowing his brow, Zuko glanced over at his master. "I know how to breathe," he said.

"But do you know how to properly control your breathing? If you did, you wouldn't need me to teach you."

Zuko sighed.

Master Jeong Jeong resumed his circling. "You must master proper breath control or you will lose control if you cannot."

He fully circled Zuko once more. "Power in firebending comes from the breath." He paused. "You will stay here and feel the sun against your skin, and breathe," said Master Jeong Jeong.

\-----

Katara sat on her knees before Master Pakku. Her gaze was toward his feet, and not on the man who stood across from her with his arms crossed over his chest. She was telling herself not to cry in front of this man.

"You have to understand, girl, that my tribe's traditions forbid me to teach you," he said.

Curling her fingers into the fabric of her tunic, she looked up at him. There were tears in her eyes, and she refused to blink them away. She stared directly at the man and fought every bone in her body telling her to yell and scream at him. She had been so excited the night before that she had been unable to sleep. Rather than have a full breakfast, she had nicked an apple from the basket that had been gifted to her in her rooms as she headed down to find the waterbending master's usual meditation spot.

"But I need to learn how to fight," she said. "I'm traveling with the Avatar—."

"I'll arrange for King Bumi to prepare an escort for you to return to the South Pole."

She clenched her jaw. "But I don't want to go back to the South Pole! I'm not meant to be in the South Pole! I'm meant to be here, with Zuko and my brother—."

"A woman should not be on the battlefield, much less a girl."

"So teach me how to defend myself, and then I'll belong on the battlefield," she said.

The man narrowed his eyes. "No," he said. "It is forbidden for a girl to learn waterbending in my tribe."

"Yeah? Well we're not in your tribe! We're in the Air Nation! That's got to be a special circumstance!"

"No," he repeated. "You do not belong here, little girl."

\-----

It was almost time for supper by the time Master Jeong Jeong had dismissed him, and Zuko's legs were stiff as he walked back to his room. He had spent all day out in the sun, standing with his legs spread wide and breathed.

It had been an incredibly boring day, and Zuko had hoped the night before that he'd have practiced a new move or two all day to show to his friends before (or after) dinner. Now, he had absolutely nothing to show them other than how he could stand and breathe.

It was when he rolled his head back and forth when he heard it. It was the distinct sound of glassware shattering against the ground, following by a muffled screech. And Zuko was pretty sure he'd heard that screech before.

He made his way over to the door from where it originated from and paused. He wasn't sure if he should knock on the door or just go in, because this was Katara.

_"That horrible, sexist old man!"_

For fear that she may freeze him to the wall behind him, Zuko knocked.

"WHAT!"

The door was wrenched open, and Zuko took a step back abruptly. Katara poked her head out. Her hair was sticking out in almost every direction and her cheeks where mottled pink. Her eyes were red and puffy around the edges, but Zuko doubted she was feeling sadness.

"Is everything—?"

"NO!"

The water that had been in the pitcher rippled on the ground, and for one of the first times in his life Zuko was thankful that he was a firebender and capable of melting any ice she may freeze him in.

"NO I AM NOT FINE! I DID NOT COME ALL THE WAY FROM THE SOUTH POLE JUST FOR SOME SEXIST OLD MAN TO TELL ME 'NO'!" she screeched.

Zuko held his hands up and stepped into the room. She watched him briefly, and then started to pace around the room. With every step she took, the water on the ground would move as if it were following her.

"Katara, please calm down," he said.

She whirled around, her braid snapping wildly around her small frame. It almost mimicked the water on the floor. She opened her mouth and was about to say something, but stopped when they heard the abrupt sound of someone stopping in the hallway.

There was another knock on the doorframe, and Zuko and Katara both glanced over. Sokka stood at the door with a worried expression on his face, his eyes searching both of the room's inhabitants for any sign that they may mean him harm.

Zuko had a feeling that he was more apprehensive about his sister, and rightfully so.

"Is everything…fine in here?"

Katara narrowed her eyes, and Zuko turned to look back at her. "No! That—!"

"Master Pakku refuses to teach her waterbending," Zuko finished for her.

Sokka's shoulders slumped. "Why?" he asked.

"'It's forbidden to teach girls waterbending in my tribe'," Katara mimicked. "That's what he told me! He even told me he'd arrange with King Bumi to send me home, Sokka!"

Zuko's heard clenched in his chest and he turned back to her. His eyes were wide and he tried to read her expression over and over to make sure it wasn't a joke. By the way her lower lip trembled, Zuko knew it was true.

Sokka's eyes widened. "What? He can't do that!"

She crossed her arms over her chest and bowed her head. "I don't want to go home, I want to fight."

"Hang on, Zuko, can't you do anything? Being the Avatar and all?" he asked.

_Can I? Could talking to Master Tenzin before Master Pakku speaks to him do anything?_

"Wait here," Zuko said. "I'm going to go talk to Master Tenzin to see if he can do anything."

Katara moved to stand, but Zuko shook his head. Katara could be hot tempered, especially when she was passionate or emotional about something. Sokka was the same way, but he never had to fear that Sokka was going to freeze him to a wall because he was angry.

"I'll be back," he said.

He left Katara's room then, leaving the two siblings alone. No doubt Katara would resume pacing around the room and Sokka would probably make a sarcastic jibe about the entire situation. Sokka would then probably take it back when he realized that Katara had spilled water on the floor, and therefore he was vulnerable to being frozen to whichever surface she deemed fit.

Zuko approached the Air Nation elder as dread began to fill up into his belly. The man sat with his ramrod straight back to him as he meditated. Around him, incense burned and swirled throughout the air.

"Uh…."

"Who is it?" the elder asked.

Zuko scratched the back of his head and shifted his footing. Awkwardly, he remembered his manners and bowed before the older man. "It's, uh, it's Zuko," he answered.

"You may come in, Zuko of the Southern Water Tribe."

Taking in a deep breath, Zuko pushed aside the curtains and stepped into the room. It was simple, and Master Tenzin knelt on a plush cushion. There were lit candles littered around the cushion and a small earthenware teapot. He was nursing a hot cup of tea and he gave Zuko a brief nod when he entered the room.

Zuko bowed politely toward his elder until it was indicated that he stand up straight. He kept his gaze lowered out of respect for the older man of high status.

"My friend Katara, she's a waterbender and—."

Tenzin sighed. "And Master Pakku refuses to teach her," he said.

Zuko nodded. "Yes—."

"You must understand that in the North, the women do not waterbend for combat. They're taught to control their bending, and if they should be gifted with the ability to heal, then they're taught how to heal," Tenzin said.

He lifted the cup to his lips and took a sip, and then he continued, "Master Pakku is an old man like me, and is committed to his traditions."

Zuko bowed his head. "He also wants to send her back to the South Pole."

Master Tenzin nodded and set his teacup back down beside his bent knees. "I will not allow that to happen," he said. "She may stay here until the war is over."

Zuko's fingers curled into his trousers. "No," he said. "I'm not going to tell her what to do, because she's going to make up her own mind eventually."

Zuko sighed and continued, "I don't want her fighting in the war, either, but she's not just going to sit on the sidelines. Sokka and I found out many times that Katara's not just some girl who'll sit at home and wait."

Master Tenzin leaned forward and rested his chin on his palm. "Have you tried talking to Master Pakku?"

"No—will that help?" he asked.

The elderly man sighed and stood from where he sat slowly. "Master Pakku has been in the Air Nation since you turned sixteen six months ago," he said. "He has been waiting patiently for your arrival, and was told that he was to teach the Avatar, not the Avatar's friend who happens to be a girl."

"Why has—how did he know to be here? How did he know I was going to be here?"

"Sixteen and a half years ago, when you were brought to the South Pole, Masters Pakku and Jeong Jeong, along with King Bumi and I, all received letters detailing that we were all to meet in Omashu in sixteen years time. It was decided at that meeting that Masters Pakku and Jeong Jeong return with me to the Air Nation to live until your arrival."

"Letters—brought to the South Pole—but how did you know I was going to even come? The only reason why I'm here is because—."

"Because my grandson disobeyed me and left to find you." Master Tenzin smiled. "I had a feeling that Aang was going to leave, as I sensed a strong spiritual presence within him. That, and he's too much like my elder sister. My mother turned grey early just trying to keep her in the Air Nation."

The man chuckled at the mention of his sister, but Zuko briefly caught a hint of sadness in his eyes. If she were close to Aang's personality, then Aang would have probably mentioned her to be a favoured relative, but for some reason, Zuko felt like he had never met his great-aunt.

_When you were brought to the South Pole…but I'm Water Tribe. I've never left in my entire life._

Zuko's shoulders slumped and he sighed. "There must be a mistake. I was born in the South Pole. My mother was—."

"You were born in the Fire Nation, Avatar Zuko."

His breath caught in his throat, and he felt the candles in the room flare upwards toward the ceiling. Master Tenzin stepped back. The older man watched Zuko's face intently.

"You were never told?"

Zuko shook his head and slowly moved to the floor until his knees collided with the earth. "My mother told me I was theirs—."

Master Tenzin shook his head. "You are your parents' child, make no mistake, but they adopted you."

"Why—why was I never told?"

The older man shook his head and kneeled down opposite Zuko. "I cannot say, for I do not know," he said. "You were brought to the South Pole for your protection."

Zuko continued to stare at the ground. He refused to look up at Master Tenzin.

_This can't be…I'm Water Tribe! I was born in the South!_

"It was sixteen and a half years ago that I received a letter from the Dragon of the West, saying that he was sure that he had the next Avatar and was safely delivering him to the South Pole.

"His birth mother had requested that he be taken far away from the Fire Nation to avoid growing up in an environment that would force him to fight without the honour and neutrality of the Avatar."

"That can't be possible!" Zuko finally looked up at the old man before him.

Master Tenzin's face was sympathetic, and the older man reached forward and placed a bony hand on Zuko's shoulder. He squeezed lightly and offered him a soft smile.

"You couldn't grow up in the Fire Nation and end the war. The world feared that with an Avatar hailing from the Fire Nation, the war would end in favour of the Fire Nation," the old man said.

Zuko's lower lip trembled and he looked own at his feet. "B-but I thought that I was only half—."

Master Tenzin shook his head. "No, I'm afraid that both of your biological parents are Fire Nation."

Swallowing, Zuko glanced back at Master Tenzin. The man's gaze looked serious, but remained caring. To him, there was also a hint of something being kept from him once more. Zuko didn't think he could take anymore about his origins anymore.

_I'm not Fire Nation, I'm Water Tribe._

_I'm not Fire Nation, I'm Water Tribe._

"What are you going to do, Zuko?"

Zuko felt his body stiffen, and he peered up at the airbending master. _I'm the Avatar,_ he thought, and I'm going to make a difference in this world.

"I'm going to be the Avatar," he said.

\-----

"Hey Katara, what's up?"

Katara looked up from where she sat and watched as Aang shifted from one foot to the next. It had been about a day since Katara had last seen Aang, and she felt bad for not really noticing.

"Hey Aang, where have you been?"

He shrugged his shoulders and moved to sit beside her. He brought his knees up to his chest and hugged them close. "I've been doing chores," he said. "My mom's making me do Gyatso's, too."

"Oh," was all she could say.

Aang frowned. "What's wrong?" he asked.

Katara mirrored Aang's position and brought her knees up below her chin. She rested her face against her knees and groaned. The fabric of her tunic was slightly smothering.

"M'ster 'akku 'on't teach me 'ow to waterbend," she managed.

"What? That's crazy!"

She raised her head from her knees. "I know! I came all the way from the South Pole to make a difference in this war, and he won't let me! He wants me to go back to my village!"

"Well, I'm not taking you back!"

She smiled softly at him. "Thanks, Aang." Then she frowned. "But Master Pakku says that he'll arrange something with King Bumi to send me back home."

Aang frowned, lines forming on his forehead foreign to his youthful complexion. "Well, I'm sure King Bumi won't let Master Poophead take you away!"

She smiled again, stifling a small giggle. "Well, I'm sure if I have King Bumi to speak for me, then I'm not leaving!"

She leaned back a little. "By the way, I think it's amazing that King Bumi is so close to the Air Nation," she said.

Aang nodded and smiled. "Yeah, Omashu is as far as most of us go, these days. King Bumi lets some of us come to go to school there or for work. The majority of the Air Nation these days are from Omashu."

Katara remembered seeing many men and women the day before walking around with their feet bare. She had assumed they were earthbenders.

"Hey Aang, I'm curious about something."

Aang scooted a little bit closer to her. "Okay, sure?"

"That woman…the Fire Nation one that could airbend…"

"Yeah, she airbent like a firebender." Aang's eyes glanced down at his shoes. "Yeah, we've known about her for a while."

"Did she come from the Air Nation?" she asked.

Aang shook his head. "I'm not sure. She might've…."

"Could the Fire Nation have more airbenders?"

Aang huffed out a puff of air and turned away. Katara noted that he seemed annoyed. "Look, we don't know much about her! All we know is that she's not Air Nation now."

"What does Master Tenzin have to say about her?" she continued.

Aang's shoulders deflated. "My grandfather honestly has never encountered her. The only Air Nation leader who has ever seen her was my great-uncle Bumi."

"Your great-uncle Bumi?"

"Yeah, he was named after King Bumi. Apparently, it was very confusing to have two Bumi's. Anyway, he just mentioned that there was a woman in the Fire Nation military that could airbend," he said. "My great-uncle Bumi didn't like to talk about her much, it seemed."

She sighed, deciding to stop with her questions for now. "He must've known her," she said.

_"She's not going back to the South Pole anytime soon."_

_Zuko?_

Katara stood abruptly. She couldn't see Zuko, but she could see there was a crowd forming toward the marketplace. Aang noticed her attention was elsewhere and stood also, stealing a glance at her as they started toward the crowd.

\-----

Master Pakku was seated on a low wooden stool near the marketplace as he nursed a hot cup of tea. He was twirling a finger around in circles above the hot beverage.

"Master Pakku," he started. "I have to talk with you."

The waterbending master sighed. "I cannot teach you anything until you've mastered both fire and air."

The elderly man didn't even look up from his tea to Zuko, and that made him rather upset. He felt his body begin to heat up and he narrowed his eyes and took a deep breath to control it. The heat within him cooled slightly, but he felt his inner flame flicker once or twice within him.

"I'm the Avatar," he said.

Master Pakku crossed his arms over his chest. "Yes, we know," he said.

"You _will_ teach her how to waterbend," he said.

The waterbending master narrowed his eyes and leaned forward from where he sat. "The Avatar is telling me how I should pick my pupils? The Avatar is telling me to betray my tribe's customs?"

In return, Zuko narrowed his eyes at the man before him. "The Avatar is telling you to teach one of the most capable students you may ever have," he said. "Katara will make a great waterbending master."

"Katara belongs in the healing huts, if she has that ability."

"She does, and she could be even more great if you were to teach her."

Master Pakku looked up from his tea. "And why would I teach a girl that is to be returned to the South Pole in due time?"

Zuko clenched his hands into fists. "She's not going back to the South Pole anytime soon."

He had made sure to say it loudly. It was partly for himself, and partly for anyone walking by. People who had been walking by had stopped and watched as the Avatar spoke to the special guest from the North Pole to Master Tenzin. A crowd had begun to gather, and many had begun to murmur and point.

Through the gaps in the crowd, he watched as Katara was squirming her way toward the front. Aang was close behind her. Her eyes were filled with surprise and awe, and he felt his heartbeat falter when he saw that expression on her face.

He turned back toward Master Pakku, who now stood up and had his arms crossed over his chest.

"And what will you do if I say no?" he said.

Zuko wouldn't take that for an answer. He wouldn't let this man not teach Katara.

Wordlessly, Zuko bent his knees and got into a stance similar to what Master Jeong Jeong had wanted from him. He took a deep breath, and with as much control as he could muster, he breathed. His temperature stayed steady, despite his frustration.

"You will fight me?"

"Yes," Zuko said.

"Zuko, stop—!"

Katara had made her way to the front of the crowd. He briefly glanced over at her and then back to Master Pakku. The older man smirked.

"You should listen to her. It wouldn't be wise to fight me, Avatar."

Zuko glimpsed past the waterbending master and noted that no one was behind him. He punched out, and he was satisfied when the fireball soared past Master Pakku's head and fizzled out before it hit anything.

Master Pakku raised an eyebrow and glanced over at his shoulder to where the fireball had dissipated. He quickly turned back to Zuko and got into a stance of his own.

_Oh, Spirits, what have I gotten myself into?_

The waterbending master pulled a long stream of water out of a nearby barrel. He twirled it around himself and sent it in Zuko's direction.

Zuko barely had had time to sidestep the stream before Master Pakku brought it back at an incredible speed toward his head. Zuko took a deep breath and punched forward, watching with great satisfaction that some of the water evaporated as the rest lost its shape from the force of the blast.

He was about to turn around toward Master Pakku when he slipped and fell onto his side. Beneath him was fresh ice gleaming right back at him. Before him, Master Pakku was forming a thin stream of water and pushing it toward him once again at an alarming rate.

Barely blocking the next strike, Zuko scrambled up from where he lay. He tried to get into a firebending stance yet again, but Master Pakku refused to give him a moment to set himself up. All attempts to deflect Master Pakku's strikes were clumsy, and Zuko felt his breathing grow ragged as he began to cling onto desperation.

Master Pakku pushed a stream of water toward him. Zuko punched out, but the water moved away from him before his unsteady flame could reach. It split across from him, twirled above his head with an odd flare that Zuko was sure Master Pakku lacked.

The water hovered above his head for a split second, and then numerous ice shards shattered above his head. As quickly as he could, he punched up and watched as every bit of ice evaporated into the air. Zuko barely registered the crowd gasping behind him.

"ZUKO, LOOK OUT!"

When he heard, Katara's voice, he looked to see that Master Pakku was sending a thin whip toward his neck. He immediately crouched down and moved. The ice barely nicked his left cheek, and he winced.

Katara ran beside him and reached out. The whip trembled in the air, and she pulled it away from him. She turned to the man who refused to teach her, and Zuko knew what she intended to do.

"Katara, wai—!"

She thrust her arms out until the water was pushed back toward Master Pakku. The waterbending mater was momentarily shocked at Katara's intervention, but he was able to regain control of the whip and shoot it back toward Katara.

Katara's stance was largely unsteady, but she was able to push the water away from her direction and back toward the master. He watched as she narrowed her eyes and bit her lip when the water turned to an ice shard.

With a wave of his hand, the ice shard split in half and melted to water. It moved to either side of Master Pakku's body, and he shifted his body until it shot toward Katara again. She deflected it clumsily, the water shooting beyond the gasping crowd and into a nearby building.

"You're quite determined," Master Pakku said.

Katara frowned. "But you still refuse to teach me."

Master Pakku smirked and pulled another stream of water from another nearby barrel and thrust it toward Katara at a speed that made Zuko's heart clench. Zuko started to step in front of her.

"No, Zuko!"

She raised her hands and stopped the water's movement. Zuko stepped back, amazed that she was able to block Master Pakku's movement and gain control over the water herself, despite her control being shaky. Master Pakku was stunned.

Zuko was about to take advantage over the waterbending master's surprise and got back into a stance. He took a deep breath and was about to extend his arm when Katara growled out. "He's mine, Zuko."

The water rippled in her grasp, but she pulled her fingers into her fist and shifted her right foot. The water shot almost accurately toward the master, who merely sidestepped it and pulled more water from another barrel from her side. Katara didn't see the movement, and Zuko was about to step in again, but Katara took a deep breath and pushed the water aside. She froze it in place and turned back to Master Pakku.

Master Pakku was standing straight and no longer in an offensive stance. Katara and Zuko both did not let their guard down. The master narrowed his eyes.

"I will be expecting you at dawn tomorrow. Do not be late."

Master Pakku turned away and clasped his hands behind his back. He started to walk away from the crowd when Katara stepped forward.

"Wait, why are you suddenly willing to teach me?" she said.

Her new waterbending master stopped. He looked over his shoulder and smirked. "Anyone that can stand up to me is no one ordinary. Also, anyone who can get the Avatar to stand down in a fight deserves to be by his side during battle. I will see you at dawn, pupil Katara."

Zuko frowned as Master Pakku walked away. The crowd watched him as he walked past, in awe over what had just occurred between the three benders. Even Aang appeared to be in complete utter awe over what he had just witnessed.

He surveyed everyone else watching, and his heart sunk when his eyes finally ended up on one person.

There, in front of the crowd stood a scarred man with his arms crossed over his chest. Great displeasure was evident across his face as he watched Zuko disapprovingly.

"And that is why you need a master to teach you how to breathe!" Master Jeong Jeong exclaimed.


	9. The Winter Solstice

Chapter Nine: The Winter Solstice

"Are you sure that move is the one you want, little girl?"

Katara frowned and glanced down at the Pai Sho board. Master Pakku sat opposite her, a smirk formed on his face and his arms crossed over his chest.

Two weeks have passed since Master Pakku had agreed to teach her waterbending. In those two weeks, she leaned many things. From her footwork to her precision, how to better control the water in her grasp, and that Master Pakku preferred the white lotus tile in Pai Sho.

Katara had also always considered herself to be a fantastic Pai Sho player, but that was until she met Master Pakku.

She furrowed her brow and changed her tile's course, and felt her stomach clench when she realized that that was what Master Pakku had wanted her to do.

"You'll do better next time," he said.

Her frown deepened and she tugged on the edge of her tunic and flipped her hair over her shoulder. The waterbending master followed her movements this time, and his gaze stopped on her neck.

It was in a matter of seconds that Master Pakku's eyes went from calculating to shock. His eyes widened and he leaned forward. Master Pakku reached out toward her neck, and Katara moved backward. His reach faltered, and his shoulders slumped.

"Where did you get that necklace?" he asked, his tone almost mournful.

Katara blinked. Her hand flew to her neck where the pendant sat against her skin. She fiddled with it. "It was my mother's, and my grandmother's before."

Master Pakku's eyes never left the necklace. "I made that necklace over sixty years ago," he said. "I made it to my betrothed, Kanna."

 _Ka—Gran-Gran?_ Her heart stopped in her chest.

Katara quickly stood from where she knelt. Her waterbending master followed her movements. She stumbled backward, catching herself on a nearby wall.

"What? How?"

Master Pakku sighed. "I was engaged to a beautiful woman sixty years ago. She was the talk of the Northern Water Tribe, you know." He looked up, his eyes glazed over.

Katara stepped out of Master Pakku's rooms. She took a deep breath and continued down the corridor toward her own.

It was not a far walk in the slightest. Master Pakku, along with her, Sokka and Zuko, were kept in moderate sized buildings meant for guests. And by guests, the rooms were most likely meant for the Avatar and bending masters.

The door to Zuko's room was cracked open, and she could see the faint glow of candles. The candlelight would occasionally increase, and then seem to fade into nothingness.

She slowly pushed the door open and stepped inside the glowing room. Zuko was sat in the middle of his floor, candles spread out all around him. He was meditating, and with every breath he took, the candlelight grew. With every breath he let out, the room would dim again. She smiled.

Katara felt a swell of pride within her. In just two weeks, she had learned so much from Master Pakku, but Zuko was able to learn so much from Master Jeong Jeong as well. Compared to when they had first arrived in the Air Nation, Zuko's breath control had improved greatly.

Suddenly, the flames in the room grew exponentially. The heat war alarming and Katara stepped back with a gasp. The flames swirled around the room and Zuko lurched forward in his meditative position. He was panting wildly.

"Zuko!"

She was conflicted. She wanted to go to him, to see what was wrong, but she was afraid if she got too close that she would be burned.

\-----

_In, and out._

_Inhale, exhale._

_Breathe, release._

Meditation was relaxing, Zuko discovered. It calmed him…put him in a more relaxed state. Master Jeong Jeong had explained that meditation was a useful tool in learning how to control one's firebending, and Zuko couldn't agree more. Ever since he had started it, he found that he had more control over his flames.

Master Jeong Jeong said that at dawn, they could start learning more intricate footwork. He found that that had excited him. They had done some work with fire, but he could sense that Master Jeong Jeong was very reserved about teaching him how to work with fire.

It seemed odd that a master firebender would be reluctant to use his abilities. The firebenders that came to the South Pole in the past certainly weren't reluctant to use their firebending against the defenseless Southern Water Tribe.

His nostrils flared. He still remembered the black soot raining down from the sky and the terrified screams of the women and children. He remembered running past Chief Hakoda's small hut to see the wrapped body of a woman being carried out.

A flash of red appeared behind his closed eyelids. He felt his body seize momentarily, but he took a deep breath in, and then released. His body calmed, but when another flash moved past, his heart accelerated.

When a third flash moved past him, this time it was more clear. And this time, Zuko realized that it wasn't just a mere flash after all. It was a comet moving at an incredible speed over a red skyline. It landed on the earth, surrounded by trees. A large explosion obliterating everything around it.

His breath caught in his throat. He could faintly hear screams of the panicked and he saw so much red. He could feel his body grow more heated, and it was growing too intense for him.

Zuko was no longer breathing the way Master Jeong Jeong had instructed him to do. His breath was just as erratic as his heartbeat.

It was then when he realized that he was in his rooms and covered in sweat. He was panting, the flames on the candles were sputtering erratically. He knew he had burned himself in some places on his arm and left cheek, and he winced at that discovery.

"Zuko!"

He turned to see Katara in the doorway, clinging to the frame. Her eyes were wide with fear, but he would've been a blind man if he didn't see the concern in her eyes. He shut his eyes, took a deep breath, and with a sharp wave of his hand extinguished the candles.

When he opened his eyes, the room was completely dark. He could only hear his heart hammering in his chest and Katara's uneven breathing.

"Katara?"

He heard her take a deep breath. "I'm fine," she said. "Are you okay?"

Zuko nodded in the darkness. "Yeah, I'm fine."

He felt her hand on his upper arm and he winced. Her hand must have touched a fresh burn, and she immediately recoiled away from him.

"You're burned!"

She didn't give him a chance to deny his wounds. He heard a slight swish of water before he felt its cooling touch against his skin. There was a faint glow that enveloped the room when Katara began to heal him. He glanced away from her, eyes focusing on the walls. He watched the blue glow bounce off the walls in an almost soothing way.

When the glow faded, he felt her move away from him slightly. The water returned to the basin that was kept near his bed.

"There," she said. "Now, will you tell me what happened?"

Zuko shrugged. "It's nothing," he said.

Zuko didn't need the candles on in the room to tell that Katara was frowning at him with her hands on her hips. He heard her huff and shift beside him.

"Fine, be like that. This'll be the last time I show my concern for you," she said.

He knew she would say that now, but he also knew that the moment he slightly injured himself, she would once again be ready with her new trick. He really wished that she had known how to do it back home in the South Pole when they were kids, it would have saved him a bunch of trips back home on hunting expeditions. He had brought that thought up with Sokka a couple of times since she presented her healing abilities.

"Yeah, it would've been really handy that time when I had two fishhooks stuck in my thumb," Sokka had said.

He sighed. "I'm sure it's nothing," he said.

"What do you mean 'I'm sure it's nothing'?"

"When I was meditating, I just saw a comet. It's no big deal."

He guessed her eyes had narrowed at this. "You, the Avatar, saw a vision of a comet that scared the spirits out of you and you're saying it's no big deal?"

"Katara—."

"You should go talk to Master Tenzin," she said.

It was said with so much finality. He knew that arguing with Katara over this matter would be futile, but he did not want to go talk to Master Tenzin about a vision he saw while meditating. It probably meant nothing and he did not want to trouble the man.

"Katara, I'm fine," he said.

She sighed, and her voice softened. "Zuko, you lost control over something you saw so it's obviously not nothing. Please just talk to Master Tenzin."

Zuko nodded and moved to get to his feet. He wobbled a little, but stood up straight and moved toward the door. He felt Katara beside him, and knew that she was trying her best to prove that he wasn't alone.

At this moment, he hated this. He hated everything that had to do with being the Avatar. Now he was pretty sure that if he stumbled, someone would claim that there was something off balance with him spiritually rather than he had just lost his footing. He greatly missed the simplicity of living in the South Pole.

Katara never left his side until they were close to the main building where Master Tenzin spent his days. She nodded her head at him and moved off to the side to wait. Where she now stood, she would be able to hear the conversation, but not be a part of it.

He pushed back the curtains and entered the room. Master Tenzin was seated on a plush cushion in meditation. Zuko felt guilty about bothering him over the vision, but he remembered that Katara was standing outside the room and knew that he had to speak with the man.

Clearing his throat, he bowed respectfully until he heard Master Tenzin greet him.

"Is everything all right, Avatar Zuko?" he questioned.

Looking up to glance at the elderly man, Zuko thought that he saw a flash behind the man's eyes.

Tenzin's back was to him, with his arms laced behind his back.

"The winter solstice," he said.

"What's the winter solstice have to do with me having visions of a comet?" Zuko asked.

Master Tenzin turned around. "The winter solstice is a great phenomenon. During the solstice, the line that divides the Spirit World and our world is blurred. Spirits will be able to appear and exert their powers into our world.

"Avatar Zuko, do you know what started the war and nearly destroyed the Air Nomads?"

_The comet—_

"It is rumoured that Fire Lord Sozin used a great comet to start the war. My father talked about firebenders utilizing a great power with the potential to destroy the world."

"But why am I seeing visions of a comet now, almost one hundred years later?" he questioned.

Master Tenzin's shoulders slumped down and he shut his eyes. "I feel like the only way you'll be able to gain any answers is if you talk to your past lives," he said.

"What? You mean I can talk to my past lives?"

Maybe they would be able to teach him how to bend all four elements properly? Maybe they would be able to teach him how to use the Avatar State?

The older airbender nodded. "Yes, through meditation you will be able to speak to your past lives. Any of them."

Master Tenzin moved across the room. He looked over his shoulder and made a gesture with his hand. "Follow me, quickly," he said.

They walked out of the room then and past Katara. Zuko could tell that she was following their movements, but remained several paces behind.

"Where are you taking me?" he asked.

"Here in the Air Nation we have created our own Hall of Avatars since our settlement. Sadly, we do not have nearly the Avatars that the Southern Air Temple is said to have, but we have a few that it does not," Master Tenzin said.

"I'm very glad you came to me when you did, or else you would not have made it in time."

_I can almost see Katara smirking at me and telling me "I told you so!"_

They stopped outside a building with a grand set of doors. Unlike the Southern Air Temple, there was no intricate lock exclusively opened by airbending. Instead, Master Tenzin pulled a key out from under the collar of his clothing and held it out.

The room was large and ornate. It was properly tended, and Zuko wondered if it was Master Tenzin who sought to take care of it himself. He doubted that there were multiple copies of that key lying around.

"Aang did a marvelous job at cleaning this room," Master Tenzin said. "Part of his punishment for leaving unannounced was to clean our Hall of Avatars…along with all the chores his mother decided to push onto him."

_Well, that explains it._

Zuko stared at the statues before him. They were of the previous Avatars, he noted. The line started with Avatar Roku, and ended with Avatar Mayu. It slightly saddened him that this room lacked the splendor of the Southern Air Temple's hall, but he knew that it couldn't be helped.

He bowed before the statue of Avatar Aang. Avatar Aang was said to be the Avatar who knew the most about the comet, seeing as he had experienced its power firsthand, despite being only twelve when it came.

He briefly registered the sound of Master Tenzin leaving him alone. The door shut behind him with a distinct thud.

Zuko moved to sit down before the statue of Avatar Aang. He held his back straight and brought his fists together and took in a deep breath. Taking one last glance at the statue before him, he closed his eyes and waited.

Except nothing was happening. Everything still felt the same around him and no one had appeared to him.

 _"It's been a while since I've been able to talk to an Avatar,"_ a voice said.

Zuko's eyes opened. The statue was gone. All of the statues were gone.

He stopped and turned around to look for the source of the voice. All he saw was a dense fog envelop the room as his heart hammered wildly in his chest.

"Who said that?" he demanded.

"Me," said the voice.

Zuko took a step back when a tall man with a short dark brown beard appeared before him. The man was bald with a blue arrow. He was rather young, Zuko thought, to be coming to him like this.

_Avatar Aang…._

Zuko took a step back. Avatar Aang stood before him clear as day, despite the fog around them. And unlike the previous times when Zuko could swear that he had seen Avatar Mayu, he felt completely coherent.

Zuko was surprised to see that Avatar Aang's face was softened as he looked upon him.

"When I meditate, I sometimes see something strange. It's like a comet coming right at me and then I lose control of my breathing."

He hated admitting that he would lose control.

Avatar Aang sighed and looked down at his feet. "One hundred years ago, Fire Lord Sozin waited until a comet arrived that would increase his bending. I was hoping that it would never come again to reign its terror upon the world once more, but it was all for naught."

Avatar Aang looked back up into his eyes. "Sozin's comet is coming, and you must prepare for it by mastering all four elements."

"When is it coming?" he questioned.

"You must defeat Fire Lord Ozai before the end of the summer," Avatar Aang said. There was a sadness to his eyes, and it slightly angered Zuko.

Zuko's eyes widened. "Wh-How? I haven't even mastered firebending yet!"

"You must do your best to master all four elements by the end of the summer, or else the world may not survive."

"How are you certain that the world won't survive? You can't know that!"

"Listen to me, Zuko. At the end of the summer, a comet will arrive that has the ability to strengthen a firebender's power immensely. Fire Lord Ozai will be able to harness this power to do unspeakable things to this world that it may never recover from.

"The world will be pushed so far into an imbalance if you are to fail."

"How do I master all the elements so quickly? Doesn't it take years to master just one?"

Avatar Aang allowed a smile. "You've mastered the four elements hundreds of times over, and I believe you can do it again."

Zuko gripped his hands into fists and chewed on the inside of his lip. Avatar Aang took a deep breath and glanced up at the ceiling. His smile dropped from his face.

"Ah," Avatar Aang sighed. "It appears that we have reached our time limit."

Zuko shook his head and reached out to Avatar Aang. "W-wait! Don't—!"

"You may talk to any of your past lives whenever you need to, Avatar Zuko. You are never alone."

And with that, Avatar Aang was gone and Zuko was alone.

\-----

Katara was pacing nervously in front of the Air Nation's Hall of Avatars. Sokka had joined her, sitting with his back at the wall opposite the great doors. She was thankful for her brother to be with her to wait, but she still feared for Zuko.

"Katara! We came as soon as we heard!"

It was Aang and his brother Gyatso that walked in. Katara smiled and ceased her pacing.

"What's going on?" Gyatso asked.

She shrugged her shoulders. "I don't know. Zuko said he had a vision, and Master Tenzin told him that he needed to meet with one of his past lives…."

Gyatso rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "My grandfather probably would have made Avatar Zuko meet with his past lives during the solstice anyway."

Aang's eyes widened. "That's right! Today's the winter solstice!"

"And what does the winter solstice have to do with any of this? Or is this some more spirit-y Avatar mumbo jumbo?"

Everyone turned to look at Sokka from where he sat on the floor. He had his arms crossed over his chest and he was slightly hunched over. Katara could almost swear that she could detect a small pout grace his mouth. Katara narrowed her eyes and Gyatso cleared his throat.

"During the solstice, the line between the Spirit World and our world is blurred. Zuko was probably having visions because—."

Aang sprang forward. "Because one of his past lives sent them to him! Wait, is it one of his past lives trying to speak to him or all of them at once?"

"All of them? How many past lives does the guy have?" Sokka mumbled.

Aang turned toward Sokka. "He's got so many! They say the Avatar has been around for thousands of years! That's a lot of Avatars!"

Sokka tightened his grip on his shirt. "And are said past lives master benders? D'you think they could help Zuko out so that he can do more than breathe and puff out a flame every now and then? You know, a little something to help end this war?"

Gyatso narrowed his eyes. "The Avatar must master all four elements in order under the supervision of a master. Avatar Zuko will learn how to bend by ways of discipline and practice, just like all of the other Avatars before him."

"But that'll take too long," Sokka groaned. "Everyday the Fire Nation—."

"I know! Believe me, I know! But the only time Avatar Zuko will be able to consult his past lives would be if he were in the Avatar State. Avatars must master all four elements before mastering the Avatar State.

"It would be disastrous if Avatar Zuko entered the Avatar State and didn't know how to properly control it and the elements."

Gyatso looked down. Katara could see that his lower lip was faintly trembling. "I want to make a difference in this war, but I just don't know how."

Gyatso fell to his knees. His eyes remained trained to his hands on hips lap. "I envy you Aang. You left home and made a difference. If you hadn't left, the Avatar would probably still be in the South Pole."

Katara moved to crouch beside Gyatso. The older boy's shoulders slumped downward and he sighed.

"It was not my destiny to find the Avatar. From here on out, I'm going to make a difference in this war." He looked up determined. "I'm going to talk to Grandfather about me going to Omashu," he said.

"What's in Omashu?" Sokka questioned.

"Many of our people travel to Omashu to either further their education or for work. Some even travel away from here if they gain merchant work, which is what I plan on doing," Gyatso said. "I'll use being a merchant as a disguise to fight the Fire Nation."

Aang sighed and Sokka's eyes glittered. "So you really just wanna bash in some Fire Nation heads, don't you?"

Gyatso nodded. "It sounds kinda fun," he said.

"Does it ever!"

Katara sighed and plopped down. She crossed her arms over her chest and frowned. "Sokka, we're not traveling just to 'bash in Fire Nation heads'."

"I said 'some' Fire Nation heads, not all."

"And I want to help take care of other Earth Kingdom towns and villages, you know, the ones the Fire Nation has taken control over. I want to show the world that airbenders still exist in this world and that we aren't just hiding," Gyatso said.

Aang stepped forward. "But Gyatso, we're pacifists. We're not supposed to be going around—."

"You left home to make a difference, Aang. Now it's my turn to. I'm just going to take care of the oppressed Earth Kingdom." Gyatso smirked. "The Fire Nation hasn't really fought any airbenders, so they don't really know how."

Aang's lips turned into a thin line. "They do have an airbender in their army, though," he said. "She knows how to fight."

Sokka lurched forward. "Yeah! She sure did a number on you, too!"

Katara turned toward her brother and reached over to smack him on the arm. "Shut up, Sokka!"

Sokka frowned. "Hey! I didn't deserve that!"

Nodding, Gyatso stood. "Yeah, I've heard about her. I wouldn't mind taking her on, too."

"Gyatso—."

Gyatso's smirk returned. "Aang, I've been airbending a few years longer than you have. Believe it or not, you're not the only one who was a master airbender at thirteen."

Pinching her brother's upper arm before he could say anything, Katara turned to nod at Gyatso. She did not know the boy very well, but she was confident that he would be able to succeed once he left home. She found him very brave and greatly admired him for it.

_And he's very attractive._

A blush rose on her cheeks and Katara turned away so that the boys wouldn't see it. She took a deep breath to steady herself, and turned to see Gyatso looking back at her. He smiled softly at her and winked. The blush that she had worked so hard to rid herself of returned. Sokka noticed it this time and groaned.

It was then when they heard something from behind the doors. Katara quickly moved to her feet. The four of them didn't know what to expect beyond the doors, so they remained several paces from the doors.

The doors opened and Zuko stepped out. His head was cast downward, his hands pulled into fists at his side. Sokka scrambled to his feet and glanced at Zuko worriedly.

"You okay, Zuko?" he asked.

Katara could only detect that Zuko felt troubled, and it was now that Katara wished that they were all back in the South Pole before they knew that Zuko was the Avatar. She missed the days where she lived in ignorance.

"At the end of the summer, there'll be a comet," he said.

Sokka nodded. "Okay, right."

Aang blinked. "Comets happen all the time!"

Zuko still looked grim, and Katara felt her heart clench in her chest. She wanted to take a step forward and stand closer to Zuko, but decided against it.

The man before her shook his head. "No, not this one. It comes once every one hundred years, Avatar Roku says."

It was then when Aang and Gyatso's eyes widened. Both airbenders glanced worriedly at each other.

"That's not good," said Gyatso. "The last one is said to have nearly destroyed our ancestors."

"Can you imagine what Fire Lord Ozai would do with that?"

Gyatso nodded. "The last great nation currently intact is the Northern Water Tribe. The Fire Nation knows that if the Earth Kingdom possibly gets the aid of the north, they may lose the grip on the war."

Sokka's eyes brightened. "I got it! Why don't we all go to the North Pole, and Zuko here can get all glowy again and, ka-pow! Problem solved!"

Katara noticed that Zuko's complexion paled considerably.

"Well, Avatar Aang said that I need to master the elements before the comet arrives," he said. "And if I don't defeat Fire Lord Ozai before the end of the summer…."

"What will happen then?" she questioned.

"The comet will come, and the Fire Nation will be stronger than ever. If they know about the comet's arrival, they could wipe out the Earth Kingdom."

 _Or the Water Tribe,_ she thought.

"So, what do we do now?" Sokka asked.

Zuko's eyes darkened. "We train, and then we fight at the end of the summer months."

Katara nodded determinedly. She reached up to touch the pendant of her necklace. She had long since pushed Master Pakku's words to the back of her mind, and she resolved to think about that another day.

She wanted to know more about her grandmother's origins, but mastering waterbending was now of the upmost importance. Time waited for no one, and this time, it was not on their side.

\-----

Lieutenant Aya's quarters were at the bottom of the ship, close to the dungeons. They were small and cramped, but Zhao figured that was all she needed. She sat on her bed with her back to the door as she calmly brushed out her long hair.

The loud creak of the door did not seem to bother her, for she neither jumped nor stopped her ministrations.

"We're heading north," Zhao said.

That was when the brush paused. The woman turned to look over her shoulder and frowned. "Why? What happened to hunting down the Avatar?" she asked.

"There will be a lunar eclipse, and this will be our only chance to destroy the Water Tribe."

The woman raised an eyebrow. "Have you forgotten that there is a Water Tribe in the south?"

Zhao felt his mouth turn into a frown. "The Southern Water Tribe is nothing compared to the Northern. Once we destroy the Northern, the Southern will fall in due time."

The lieutenant turned away from him again and resumed brushing her hair. "I don't think destroying the Northern Water Tribe is in our best interests. They have stayed out of the war for the last one hundred years, and they will continue to do so."

Zhao stepped forward and sneered. "Once word of the North Pole's defeat reaches the Earth Kingdom, their spirits will fall. They will lose hope."

"Or you will anger them," she said. "And make them fight harder."

"And I will crush them."

The woman narrowed her eyes. "The people of the Earth Kingdom are as stubborn as they are strong, Zhao."

He took a step forward. "You doubt me?"

The scum shifted where she sat and set her brush to the side. "The cold doesn't bother me, Zhao. It bothers you and any other firebender. An attack on the North Pole is a suicide mission."

Zhao felt his inner temperature increase and he took another step forward toward the woman lieutenant. She moved to stand up from her bed. Her back was ramrod straight with tension and her eyes caught in a glare.

"You want to lead your men on a mission that could get them all killed. There's no way that you can succeed at taking down—."

"Who said I was going to just use my men?"

The woman's eyes widened. Zhao sneered.

"I will send off a missive to Fire Lord Ozai as soon as I am able, and men will come my way. The Fire Lord will see that this tactic is in the upmost importance of the Fire Nation's interest," he said.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In case some of you are scratching your heads every time I mention "Air Nation" over "Air Nomads," I'll explain some things right now since I had someone ask about it over on FF.Net. The Air Nomads are now the Air Nation due to the fact that they're no longer nomadic. Avatar Aang and King Bumi settled the Air Nomad survivors in a spot of land not too far from Omashu a few years after Sozin's Comet. 
> 
> They still hold onto many of their customs and traditions, but since they've settled in one place for several decades, they are now the Air Nation. I hope that clears some things up!


	10. The Dragon of the West

Chapter Ten: The Dragon of the West

He had been looking all over the ship for her.

Lieutenant Aya was standing on the deck, glancing out at the water as the ship moved through the deep ocean. Zhao narrowed his eyes and clasped his hands together behind his back as he approached her. She stiffened once he was beside her, and he smirked.

"Have you gotten any word from Fire Lord Ozai?" she asked without looking at him.

Zhao's hands moved to tighten around the ship's railing. "No, but I expect to hear from him in a couple of days. An attack on the second strongest nation is crucial for this war to be won," he said.

She nodded, but still refused to look at him.

"Did you know that many retired Fire Nation military men like to live in the coastal Earth Kingdom cities?" he asked. "I could never think of a reason why someone would willingly choose to live in such a horrid country…."

Aya sighed beside him and bowed her head. "What do you want, Zhao?"

"I have a bit of a favour to ask of you, really," he said.

She laughed wryly. "Hah, and what could I, the scum at the bottom of your boot, do for the great Commander Zhao?"

A vein in his temple throbbed. When she was in the presence of others, she appeared insolent and disrespectful to his authority. He loathed it, and she knew it.

"You were good friends with General Iroh, also known as the infamous Dragon of the West," he said.

He was surprised to see that she could stiffen even more, but her face remained impassive. "General Iroh is a traitor to the Fire Nation."

"The entire country knows that, but the man considered you a friend."

"I doubt that a few cups of tea and games of Pai Sho made me a friend of the great Dragon of the West," she said.

"I never had the patience for Pai Sho—."

"You never had the patience for anything," she said.

Zhao whirled around and grabbed onto her wrist. Instantly he made his palms hot, which he knew she could faintly feel through the armoured band she wore around her forearm. Her brows drew into a straight line, and she frowned.

"I only have the patience for moves that could benefit the Fire Nation," he said.

She narrowed her eyes. "Or yourself," she retorted.

His grip tightened on her arm and he jerked with all of the strength of his shoulder. Lieutenant Aya immediately was thrown across the deck, her shoulder connecting first with the metal. She rolled until she was on her knees before him.

His crew had been attending to the ship and taking inventory, and when they saw him roughly move her, they all stopped and stared. He didn't care that they were watching, and he felt that he could make a prominent example out of the scum before him.

Zhao felt his palms heat up, and he slowly lifted them up until he held a flame in the palm of his hand. When he was about to punch out at her, aiming for her frustratingly green eyes, did she speak.

"The traitor General Iroh resides in a coastal Earth Kingdom village not too far from here. If we continue a little north and aim for the west, we'll make it there in the morning," she said.

The flame in his palm fizzled out and he sneered. "I knew you were still speaking to him," he said.

"I have not seen him in over sixteen years," she said.

"But you have spoken to him."

Her eyes narrowed. "Once."

Zhao crossed his arms over his chest. "You will tell me where the traitor is, or I will personally have you thrown over the edge of this ship."

"What business do you have with him?"

"The man may be a traitor, but he was the greatest general the Fire Nation has seen in generations. I, of course, will be greater to him once I have reached the title of general."

She scoffed and his eyes narrowed. "I never thought you'd value someone else's opinion."

He lowered his face until it was level with hers. "Now, where is he?"

\-----

Zuko was laying flat on his back as his chest heaved. Sweat trickled across his skin and he clenched his hands into fists to bash into the earth beneath him. He gritted his teeth.

"Damn it!"

"C'mon, Zuko! You can do it! One more time!" Aang called out.

Zuko lurched up from where he lay and narrowed his eyes. "I've been at this for hours! All I get from it is a gate to the face!"

"It's all a part of the learning process!"

The last time he had been hit with one of the gates, his nose bled everywhere and Tenzin allowed him to sit out for ten minutes to staunch the flow. This time, Zuko was sure that the latest hit had landed him a black eye.

Ever since he had spoken to Avatar Aang during the solstice, Master Tenzin had decided that Zuko needed to increase the amount of meditation he would do a day, something Master Jeong Jeong wholeheartedly approved of, and begin basic airbending training. Originally, he had been excited to start airbending, but that was before he realized how difficult it would be just to produce a little bit of air. So far, all he could create was a plume of smoke from his fists. No air.

"No worries! You'll get it in no time!" Aang had said.

_Easy for you to say, you don't have the fate of the entire world in your hands,_ he had thought.

Sokka, who was also watching him beside Aang, just shook his head.

His days were extremely busy these days. In the morning, he would awaken and meditate, then eat a small spot of breakfast with Katara. Then he would go meet Master Jeong Jeong and practice his breathing for an hour. And as per Master Tenzin's orders, Master Jeong Jeong was starting to put more emphasis on firebending basics than before.

At noon, he was given a break to eat a small lunch, which was usually when Sokka joined him and Katara. After lunch, then he would start his airbending training with Master Tenzin. At first, it was meditation…which was frustrating. Then the spinning gates became involved and Zuko wished he could go back to the days where all he would do is meditate.

A shadow appeared over him and he glanced up. Master Tenzin stood over him, arms crossed over his chest. "Get up, Avatar Zuko," he said.

He inwardly groaned and slowly stood up. His ribs were sore and his face still burned from when it had connected with one of the spinning gates. He was exhausted in both body and mind.

Master Tenzin restarted the spinning gates and declared that they were ready for him. Zuko reluctantly nodded and started to run toward them.

He passed into it quickly, spinning on his heel and avoiding a gate that came for him. Another came at him, and Zuko moved away from it like he had become air.

Elation spread throughout his very being. He had been at this for days, and for him to finally succeed….

_I-I did it! I avoi—_

A gate connected with his shoulder, pushing him into another, which knocked him back into another. Zuko was sure that he heard a rib crack and it became hard for him to breathe.

He saw an opening, and jumped forward. He felt a gate hit his leg, but he was able to make it through onto the other side. He fell face down, gasping for air.

He heard cries of his name, and he felt another series of shadows appear over him. Slowly, he rolled over onto his back and looked into the worried faces of Aang, Sokka, and Master Tenzin.

"Well, you had it for a second!" Aang said.

He could only groan. His right side felt like it was on fire and it was difficult for him to breathe. Sokka was trying to pull him into a sitting position, but it was too painful. He just shook his head and gasped out that he'd prefer to lie down.

He wrapped an arm around his ribs and clenched his eyes tight.

"Aang, can you go grab Katara for me?" Sokka asked.

Sokka turned back to look at him and grimaced. "How're you feeling, buddy?"

Zuko groaned. "I must look pretty bad right now," he gasped.

Sokka tried to smile, but failed. He nodded slowly. "Yeah, you look like you got in a fight with a rabid polar bear dog and lost."

\-----

Master Pakku was teaching her the octopus form.

Katara had no trouble creating a large body of water, but she was having difficulty creating eight different whip-like limbs. She had, so far, only succeeded in creating two, with a stumpy third.

Apparently, she was making wonderful progress, more than any other student Master Pakku has ever had in the North. She enjoyed hearing that, but she also felt pressured to succeed even more. She was his first female student, but she was having difficulty with a move that seemed so easy. He could easily do the octopus form as if it were nothing.

"That was a great attempt, if you wanted to leave your back wide open."

Katara furrowed her brow and jerked her arm out. The third octopus limb pushed out, but it was shaky and uncontrolled. It collided with a nearby pot, shattering it to a million pieces and barely missing Sokka.

_Sokka?!_

Sokka was out of breath, and Katara wasn't sure if it was from exertion or because she nearly hit him with an octopus limb.

"Katara!"

"Sorry, Sokka! I didn't see you there! I thought you were with—."

He made a waving gesture that made her stop talking. He stood up straight and took in a deep breath before he let it out.

"Zuko needs your help! We had a little accident with the spinning things and—!"

She didn't let him finish. She had already lost her concentration on her octopus, allowing it to splash on the ground. She turned to look at Master Pakku, who simply nodded at her, and she started to run in the direction of where they were training Zuko with the spinning gates. Katara faintly heard Sokka behind her groan, but she ignored him as she ran toward her friend, picking up her water skin from where she had left it before she had begun her training.

Zuko was lying on the ground, arm wrapped around his torso. There was blood streaming down his face, and Katara couldn't tell if it was from a bloodied nose or a busted lip. From where she stood, she guessed it was both.

Aang and Master Tenzin were both near him, the latter knelt beside him with a worried look on his face. Aang was rambling about how that was Zuko's best run yet with the spinning gates.

With a shake of her head, she knelt beside him and opened the lid to her water skin. She bent the water out and held it to his face first. Under his breath, Zuko mumbled something that sounded like a greeting, but she could only frown as the water glowed blue and began to deal with the damage to his face.

"Is he going to be okay?" Aang asked.

Katara sighed. "Probably, but he should probably take it easy."

She pulled the water away from his face. The majority of the blood came with the water, but the area around his nose and chin were still stained pink. From the look of things, Zuko just had had too much blunt force to his nose and busted his lip open. The lip would take a little bit more time to heal than his nose, sadly.

Glancing down at where he was holding onto his ribs, Katara frowned. She reached down and placed a hand on Zuko's.

"I need you to move your hand," she said softly.

He grit his teeth and slowly moved it away. Katara took a deep breath and slowly bent the water back in its skin so that she could cap it. She took another deep breath and moved to push Zuko's shirt out of the way. The heat that built up momentarily in her cheeks embarrassed her, but it was quickly pushed away when she saw the discoloration adorning his ribs.

She swore under her breath to the spirits as she reopened her water skin top and bent the liquid. The water moved over his skin, and Katara let it sink in. It glowed once more as she worked to fix the damage. She guessed that he had broken at least one rib and bruised another. She easily fixed the bruised rib, but knew that it would take time for Zuko's broken one to heal completely.

"I think that's enough airbending training for today," she said.

Mediation probably was the only bending Zuko could do at the moment, for anything that aggravated his ribs could delay his recovery.

Zuko furrowed his brow when she said this, and he jerked up quickly. The motions were too much for him to handle, because he immediately winced and groaned. Katara brought her hands up to his shoulders to gently push him back down.

"I-I can't stop training! I only have—!"

"You need to rest!"

His gaze didn't waver from hers. "I'll have my ribs wrapped, and then I'll continue," he said.

"No," she said.

"Katara, I don't have much time before I have to face the Fire Lord. I—!"

"Zuko…."

"No, you don't understand!"

She recoiled from his outburst, and glanced down at her lap. Ever since the solstice, Zuko has been training nonstop until he could move no longer.

"Avatar Zuko, I think Katara is right when she says that you need to take it easy for a couple of days. You are done training for today," Master Tenzin said with finality, and Katara knew that Zuko would not go against his words.

It was now Zuko's turn to be silent. When Katara looked up, his eyes were clenched shut and his jaw was set. She wanted nothing more than to tell him that everything would be all right, but she had a distinct feeling that it would only anger him even more.

\-----

Zuko had been sent back to his rooms where he would meet with a healer to further evaluate the condition of his ribs. She was able to confirm that he had indeed broken one rib, and that Katara had done a wonderful job with dealing with all the bruising before she could take a look at him.

She wrapped his ribs tightly, and Zuko found it even more difficult to move his upper body. Breathing was still difficult, and Zuko what Master Jeong Jeong would tell him.

In truth, Zuko was more all right with delaying his airbending training for a few days, but he refused to delay his firebending. Most Avatars had the first sixteen years of life to master their native element while he only had less than a year. It would take a miracle gifted upon him by the spirits if he were to successfully master firebending before he had to face the Fire Lord.

When the healer had left his rooms, Zuko quietly thanked her and shut the door after her departure. He lit nearby candles with a precise flick of his wrist and gingerly sat down before them.

With a deep sigh, he began to meditate. He focused on his breathing, albeit painful, and the heat of the candles. Every time he breathed in, he felt the fire grow, and every time he let a breath out, they would flicker and spread. He repeated this until his full attention was on the flames. He was lost in the sensation and for one of the first times in his life felt one with his natural element.

He continued on until the pain was only in the back of his mind. It was like an annoying jab followed by a burning sensation every time he breathed, but he deemed it of lesser importance. What was important was the fire in the room.

It was hours later when Zuko heard a knock that he even realized that he had spent so long in his room. He slowly opened his eyes and glanced over his shoulder at the door and waited for the person on the other side to speak.

"Aang just said dinner's ready," Sokka said through the door. "Katara'll kill you if you don't show up."

Zuko sighed. "I'll be out in a minute," he said.

He knew that Sokka would wait outside the door, and then gripe about how hungry he was once they were on their way to the dining hall. Zuko smiled and moved slowly to stand. He was about to pull on the shirt he had worn earlier, only to notice some dried blood on it from earlier.

With a grimace, he cast it away to the side and pulled a freshly laundered one out. Once he wore the clean shirt, he walked over to a nearby basin filled with water. He quickly splashed some on his face before running a hand across it. With a sigh, he extinguished the candles in his room with a wave of his hand, and opened the door.

He had accidentally jolted the door, causing Sokka to startle slightly. He did his best to smoothly recover with a cross of his arms and a slight lean to the wall behind him.

"Man, it took you forever! C'mon, I'm so hungry, I could eat an entire ostrich horse."

Zuko smiled slightly. "Sorry, I had to change my clothes," he said.

Sokka shrugged his shoulders. "I'm just sayin', it took you a while is all."

As usual, the dining hall was lively. There was chatter and the clatter of plates as people moved amongst each other in the hall. The room smelled of vegetables cooked in butter, fresh bread and a type of roast.

He sat beside Katara, with Sokka settling on the other side of him. She had already had a small bowl of rice and a fresh yeast bun in front of her. She smiled at him, asking him how his ribs felt.

"Better," he said.

She was happy to hear it, and she turned around to talk to Aang beside her. Zuko glanced over toward the boy, and had to suppress a laugh when he saw Aang listening to her every word with fascination. He never thought a conversation about having to fix a hole in one's sock to be an interesting topic, but Aang was definitely interested in whatever Katara had to say. Well, to be fair, Aang wasn't listening, exactly. It was more like he was just staring at Katara.

He turned to Sokka, who was piling a large amount of food on his plate.

"Have you noticed that Aang kind of just stares at your sister?" he asked.

Sokka was just about to lift a yeast bun to his mouth when he furrowed his brow. "You've noticed it, too?" Zuko nodded. "I don't really like it."

Zuko chuckled, mentally cursing himself and Sokka for making him laugh when the pain returned. "Why don't you like it?"

Sokka shrugged. "I dunno. The idea of Aang and Katara…ughh!" He made a sort of disgusted noise and bit into the yeast bun.

Zuko could only nod and he turned to look back at Katara. She was daintily eating her rice, occasionally talking to Aang, who still hung onto her every word. The young boy still hadn't touched any part of his dinner.

He tried to imagine Aang and Katara being together, and came up with nothing. He tried to look ahead ten years into the future, and saw nothing either. To be fair, he was unable to see what he was going to be ten years in the future, as well.

"Yeah, I doubt he'd be a good—."

A figure moved from across the table, and Katara quickly looked up. Zuko followed her eyes and they landed on Gyatso. The boy, who Zuko recalled being the same age as he was, sat down opposite of them and started to serve himself. Katara kept her eyes on him, a slight blush rising in her cheeks.

_She's…blushing?_

It was…horrible and Zuko felt a pang of jealousy rise in his chest. And suddenly, he felt his hunger quickly vanish from his belly and his frustrations rise.

\-----

It was after dinner when Katara sat on a small earthbending-created stool. She had her elbow propped up on her knee as she watched Zuko clumsily maneuver through his firebending basics to practice. In her opinion, she thought Zuko was doing great and she could tell that there was a lot of improvement after these last few weeks with Master Jeong Jeong. If it weren't for the broken rib, his form probably would have been perfect.

Zuko would go through a set, apparently mess up, and then either kick at the earth below his feet or stomp a flame into the ground. Sometimes he would go several minutes without getting frustrated, and whenever he would show upset, it would jolt her.

"How's he doing?"

She stiffened and turned to look behind her. Gyatso stood straight, and he moved to sit beside her on the ground. She shook her head.

"He's getting frustrated easily," she said. "And I think he shouldn't be training in his condition," she added.

"That's not good. Frustration will only make him mess up more." Gyatso raised an eyebrow. "And since he's working with firebending, I'd hate for him to accidentally hurt himself even more than he is already."

Katara smiled and patted the water skin that she had wrapped around her torso. "I think I can take care of that."

She wasn't prepared for Gyatso to return her smile, and it made her heart flutter and the heat rise in her cheeks. She hoped that in the darkness that Gyatso couldn't see her blush.

A particular blast from Zuko came a little closer and lit up the area around them. She jumped slightly and Gyatso made a move to step in front of her in case a flame should come close. It fizzled out before anything could happen.

Gyatso frowned. "Hey, Zuko! Why don't you go have a cup of tea."

Zuko's shoulders heaved. "I don't need any tea! I need to master firebending!"

"You won't master firebending tonight! And you came close to burning us!"

Katara watched as Zuko stiffened. She smiled softly at him and he let out a breath he had been holding, a blow of steam escaping his lips.

"He's right, Zuko. I think you should take a break for a little while. You've been at it for a while now and the frustration isn't helping you right now." She smiled at him. "And you broke a rib today, so you should take it easy."

"I don't have time to 'take it easy'!" he said.

Gyatso leaned back a little. "You broke one rib today and bruised another, I think you should take it a little easy for a couple of days."

Katara nodded. "I'll try to see if I can heal it any more tomorrow, too. But please, Zuko, stop practicing for tonight and go to sleep."

His breathing was ragged and he preferred to stand more on his left side. Zuko looked like the moment he stopped trying to work through the basics that he would collapse. Katara knew that if he were to fall, she would have trouble picking him back up, and she worried that he would injure himself further.

"I—."

She took a deep breath. "The Avatar should know when to quit," she said.

He narrowed his eyes. "The Avatar should know to never give up."

Katara shook her head. "But you're not giving up, Zuko. You're stopping so that you can get up later and do it again," she said.

Gyatso nodded. "The Avatar must be able to know when to save the fighting for another day. It's not a failure."

He didn't say anything after that. Instead, he kept his mouth shut and seemed to mull over his thoughts before he took an unstable step backward.

"One more time," was all he said.

Alarm bells rang in Katara's mind. Every time Sokka, and occasionally Zuko, when they were children would call out 'one more,' it usually grew into many more than that.

She was about to say something when Zuko turned away from her and walked ten paces. She watched him inhale deeply, and then exhale. He started to move the way that he had many times, but this time it seemed almost more refined. His footwork was less clumsy and his movements more assured. The fire he released and moved about was more controlled than ever and Katara's breath caught in her throat.

_It was pretty,_ she thought, _the fire dancing around in the air…._

When Zuko finished, all the fire was gone and he was breathing raggedly. His arm was wrapped around his right side and Katara moved from where she stood to his side. She gently placed a hand on his shoulder and started to guide him in the direction of their rooms.

"Rest up, Avatar Zuko. I'm sure Aang's dying to show you how to do the air scooter."

\-----

Zhao hated the Earth Kingdom.

The entire country was composed of barbarians that enjoyed kicking around in dirt and mud. He wanted nothing more than to see the entire country in flames, either dying out completely or bending to the will of the Fire Nation.

There were only a handful of good things that came out of the Earth Kingdom. It's rich farmland and its mines. Everything else was pointless.

He cast a glance at the scum of a woman walking beside him. She seemed nonchalant and almost bored. He knew it was a lie, for she had reluctantly told him the location of the teahouse that they were searching for.

"What you're looking for is in a small port village in the Western Earth Kingdom—the Fire Navy is in control of it," she had said.

The little seaport village was almost a perfect example of what he wanted from the Earth Kingdom. It was under Fire Nation rule, and its mines being used by the Fire Nation. Any earthbenders were arrested promptly and imprisoned for life.

They stepped inside a small teahouse. It was very warm inside and smelled deeply of fresh herbs and berries. The fresh scent of cakes baking in the back permeated through the air. It appeared to be almost too cheerful for a place under Fire Nation control, and Zhao hated it immediately.

"What would you like? Can I suggest a nice—."

Zhao interrupted the old man. "We're not here for tea. We're—."

The old man smiled warmly. "Not here for tea, eh? Well, perhaps you would like a lemon cake? Li makes wonderful lemon cakes."

He could feel the vein in his temple throb and he itched to grab the old man by the apron. "We're here on business that pertains to the Fire Nation's best interests."

Not hiding the smirk on his lips, he watched as the old man clenched his hold on his worn earthen teapot. He lowered it a little and furrowed his brow. The smile was gone from the old man's face.

"You've certainly grown since I've last seen you, Zhao."

"That would be Commander Zhao to you, General Iroh."

General Iroh narrowed his eyes and set the teapot down on a nearby table. "And what do you want with me, Commander Zhao? I'm just an old man, you know."

Zhao felt his smirk widen and he gestured for Aya to hand him the scroll that was tightly clenched in her hands. He took it gently and thrust it toward the old general. General Iroh took it slowly, his eyes never leaving Zhao's.

He clasped his hands behind his back as the general unrolled and skimmed it over. He watched as General Iroh's fingers clenched tightly around the parchment and he could have sworn that the older man paled.

"Zhao, this is suicide," he said.

"You think I actually want the help of a traitor unless I absolutely needed it? I need a general—."

"And no general in the Fire Nation is willing?"

Zhao felt his mouth twitch. He had presented the idea to Fire Lord Ozai many years before. The Fire Lord had thought the idea of destroying the Northern Water Tribe to be a great notion, but thought it only possible with the help of the rumoured Sozin's Comet or the Avatar. The Fire Lord only consented if he could get a general to join his cause.

"I won't do it. My life is peaceful here and I would prefer to live out the rest of my life—."

"And what of your honour, General Iroh? You lost it sixteen years ago when it is said that you hid away the Avatar from your own nation. Your honour is not in brewing cups of tea."

General Iroh sighed and glanced toward the scum that stood beside him. She had stiffened her shoulders and looked away from the old man. Zhao sneered.

"If you don't come along with me, I'll be sure to tell your brother where you are. I'm sure he's just dying to see you again."

Sixteen and a half years ago, General Iroh had mysteriously left the Fire Nation Capital City on a small navy ship just two days after he had returned with his brother. The same day that he had left, on that very same morning, Princess Ursa's newborn son had passed.

General Iroh's crew had been arrested and interrogated, but none of them said anything of where they had gone or why they had. Fire Lord Azulon decided that each and every one of them were traitors to the Fire Nation, and had General Iroh's legendary crew executed for treason. General Iroh was to be imprisoned for life at the Boiling Rock, but escaped with his son, Prince Lu Ten.

Princess Ursa was stripped of her titles and imprisoned for one year. She was released in order to provide Prince Ozai and heir since the navy was unable to locate her firstborn.

After the birth of Princess Azula, heir to the Fire Nation throne, Ursa had vanished completely. She was to be imprisoned once more, at the Boiling Rock akin to General Iroh. But again, like General Iroh, she was able to escape. Unlike General Iroh, no one had been able to find her for fourteen years.

"Father, I just pulled the lemon—."

A young man came out from the back of the teahouse. He stopped when he saw Zhao and Aya standing next to the old man, and his hands clenched around the pan that held the cakes. Zhao couldn't help but smirk.

"And I'm sure Fire Lord Ozai would love to see his _beloved_ nephew again," he said.

General Iroh's expression darkened, and for the first time since Zhao had laid eyes on the man did he see the legendary Dragon of the West that people still whispered about in the shadows. It ignited a spark of glee within him, now that he knew that he had the old general exactly where he wanted him.


	11. The Message

Chapter Eleven: The Message

A commotion in the great hall is what called King Bumi out of his chambers during the late hours of the night. One of his servants abruptly placed a robe over his shoulders and he let them usher him toward the source.

When he entered the great hall, a teenaged boy stood before him breathless. He had long brown hair, tanned skin and bright green eyes. His clothing was dirty, covered in sweat and slightly worn around the edges. According to one of his servants and the whispers of the guards, he had rode in on an ostrich horse.

The boy was clutching his side with one hand and a rolled piece of parchment in the other. The boy took in a deep gulp of breath and extended the parchment toward Bumi, who took it without question with a raise of his eyebrow.

He untied the knot that kept it together and unrolled it without a word. All traces of amusement left his face as he scanned over the characters. He felt the colour vanish from his face and he stole a glance from the parchment to the boy.

"What is your name, boy? And where have you come from?"

The boy took a deep breath. "Haru," he said, pausing to take another deep breath. "And I come from a small mining village near the Mo Ce Sea."

Bumi nodded. "Well, Haru, you'll eat a warm meal tonight and have yourself a good sleep before you head back to your little mining village with another message from myself."

Haru, who had suddenly realized that he was indeed talking to a king, knelt down on one knee respectfully. His head was bowed down low.

"Forgive me, my king, but there is no one to give a message to. Mushi, the man who wrote that message for you, my king, has been taken by the Fire Nation!"

Bumi felt laughter bubble up in his chest and he threw his head back with a cackle. "That's fine, m'boy! You can take the message to Mushi's boy, Li, was his name?"

"Li?"

"Yes, do you know Li? Last time I saw him he was a rather small boy of ten….How old are you, Haru?"

"Sixteen, and y-yes, my king. He's a friend of mine."

Bumi smiled. "Splendid! Then you'll be all right with me telling you that 'Li' isn't Li's real name, are you?"

Haru finally looked up at him, his eyes wide with confusion. "What? Of course—!"

"Li arrived with his father mysteriously in your little mining village, didn't he?"

"Uh, yes, my king, but I was just born when he—!" the boy stammered out.

King Bumi cackled again. "Why, I'm sure you never even thought that the rightful heir to the Fire Nation throne lived in the same village as you! Life is full of unexpected surprises, no?"

Haru blanched, and Bumi felt the carefree air around him dissipate. He leaned forward until he was almost level with the boy. "Promise me that you will stay by his side, Haru. When the war is over, someone will need to take the Fire Nation throne. And that someone is Prince Lu Ten of the Fire Nation, the rightful heir."

\-----

"Again."

Zuko grit his teeth and started with the movements of his basics as Master Jeong Jeong watched over him with a critical eye. His ribs were still sore from his last airbending training session, well, that didn't include meditation. Master Tenzin had decided that in lieu of his recent injuries, he ought to take a break from the physical side of airbending training in favour of the spiritual side. He greatly welcomed the change of pace for once.

"That was, slightly better…but still awful," said Master Jeong Jeong.

By the day, Zuko found himself growing more frustrated with his firebending training. He as certain that he could start beginning more advanced firebending moves, but Master Jeong Jeong continuously insisted that he wasn't ready. It wasn't like Zuko enjoyed firebending, it was just that he needed to master it quickly so he could put more into his airbending training, and then to move onto water and earthbending.

He redid the set, flawlessly, in his opinion. He stepped back satisfied with display of the basics, only to see that Master Jeong Jeong had his arms crossed over his chest and a frown plastered to his face. Zuko felt his cheeks redden and his frustrations rise even more.

"Frustration will get you nowhere," Master Jeong Jeong snapped. "Breathe, and try again."

"But I've—!"

"Breathe, and try again," his master repeated.

Zuko turned around and kicked a small pebble that was close to his feet. Briefly, he heard it connect with something nearby, but he thought nothing of it. He took a deep breath, felt his side twinge, and got into his stance again.

When he completed the basic set, he turned toward Master Jeong Jeong, whose critical eye made him feel nothing but dread immediately. He was completely unprepared for the older man's frown to turn into a small smile.

"Adequate," he said.

That was the most appraisal that his master had ever given him, and Zuko felt a wave of happiness overtake him. He knew that, by no means, would it be the last time he worked through that set. Something told him that Master Jeong Jeong would continue to drill it into his skull every day, and probably multiple times a day at that.

Master Jeong Jeong's appraisal meant that was improving. Every improvement meant that he was one step closer to mastering firebending, and that thought pleased him quite a bit.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw another man enter his line of vision. The man wore nice clothes and stood proudly, and Zuko immediately knew whom it was.

"Avatar Zuko, a moment?"

There was a small sliver of dread that filled Zuko when Master Tenzin called out to him. He felt a twinge in his side, as he tended to have whenever he thought of Master Tenzin. Which usually led him to remember his airbending training.

With a nod of his head, Zuko politely bowed to Master Jeong Jeong and followed Master Tenzin out of the small clearing used for his firebending training.

Once again Zuko found himself in Master Tenzin's brightly coloured room, with the four cushions on a dais and candles strewn before it. It had actually been a few weeks since he had been in this room, and that thought filled Zuko with a small sliver of dread.

"I find that it would be appropriate to tell you about why you were brought to the Southern Water Tribe," Master Tenzin said.

Zuko's eyes widened and he felt his heart accelerate in his chest. "Why are you choosing to tell me now?" he asked.

Master Tenzin seemed preoccupied. His mind appeared to be on many things and thus made him distracted. Zuko wondered what brought him to pull him away from his firebending training about why he had been taken to the South Pole as an infant. He had previously been very against the idea.

"I just received a letter from the Dragon of the West," he said.

Zuko felt the blood leave his face and he stiffened. The Dragon of the West was the man who had taken him from the Fire Nation to the South Pole. He was the one who had organized for him to have masters in the Air Nation once he was of sixteen years.

Master Tenzin nodded. "As you know, the Dragon of the West brought you to the Southern Water Tribe."

Zuko nodded. "Yes," he said.

"He has been a well-trusted ally to the Air Nation since before you were born, and I will tell you that the news that his letter brought is most disturbing."

Zuko glanced around Master Tenzin to the piece of paper lying prone on a small table. "Is that the letter there?" he asked.

His airbending master nodded, and Zuko reached for the letter. He pulled at the edges of the parchment to straighten it out so that he could read over the characters more easily.

"He has joined the ranks of Commander Zhao to launch an attack on the Northern Water Tri—why would he do this? You said you trusted him! He sounds like nothing more than a common Fire Nation—!"

Master Tenzin held up a hand to silence him, and Zuko felt his temperature begin to rise. "He has not turned toward the Fire Nation," he said.

"How do you know? When was the last time you saw him?"

Master Tenzin didn't say anything at that.

"How do you know he's not leading this attack to destroy the Northern Water Tribe and return to the Fire Nation! How do you know this isn't something to restore his honour—!"

It was then when Master Tenzin glanced up at him and narrowed his eyes. "Because I know that Iroh wants nothing more than for this war to end by the Avatar's hand, not his, and certainly not the Fire Nation's."

Zuko crossed his arms over his chest. "You haven't seen him in sixteen years, and yet you're trusting him?" he asked lowly.

"I will always trust the Dragon of the West," Master Tenzin said.

Zuko glanced downward, shut his eyes, and counted to ten. Drawing in a deep breath, he opened his eyes and looked at Master Tenzin before him. "What can you tell me about the Dragon of the West? How can you be sure that he's still on our side?" he asked.

Master Tenzin paused, searching for his words. "I can tell you that he is currently the greatest firebender the world has seen in generations. He is a man with more honour than you can imagine," he said.

Zuko continued to watch the airbending master. "He was a good friend of the previous Avatar, Mayu. He's been on our side since before you were born."

Zuko blinked. "B-but that doesn't make any sense!"

Master Tenzin leaned in, his eyes glittered. "I doubt that the Dragon of the West would have written a letter to King Bumi to tell him of joining the Fire Nation's ranks for an attack on the Northern Water Tribe if he really was affiliated with he Fire Nation. It was his way of letting us know that an attack was to be attempted on the North."

Taking a step back, Zuko's heart started to beat rapidly in his chest. "Then we have to go North! We can't just stay—."

Master Tenzin gave him a weary sigh. "I'm afraid that we cannot join the North in the fight against the Fire Nation," he said.

"Why not? I-I'm the Avatar! I have to protect—!"

"You are an Avatar in training! You have yet to master firebending, and I cannot allow you to leave the Air Nation until you have mastered the elements!"

"But—!"

"Because all of the previous Avatars died leaving the Air Nation! Avatar Aang left to discuss peace negotiations. Avatar Nikora left and died to protect the Air Nation from discovery! Avatar Mayu left to protect Gaipan! They were all dead before their time, and I will not see that happen to you!"

He was then silent. Zuko knew that, of course, all the previous Avatar before him had died, but he hadn't realized that it had shaken Master Tenzin as much as it had. Most likely, it had also shaken the rest of the Air Nation if the previous Avatars had spent much of their time amongst them.

Bowing his head, Zuko closed his eyes. "I'm sorry," he muttered.

He was about to ask what he ought to do in this situation, other than continue to try and master firebending, when there was a sudden commotion. The curtains that covered the entryway were pushed open, and Zuko turned to see Master Pakku move to enter the room. He froze when he saw Zuko standing before Master Tenzin, and bowed respectfully.

"My apologies, Tenzin. I was unaware that you were holding a conversation with the Avatar," he said.

Master Tenzin gestured for him to come. "It's quite all right, Pakku." He placed his hand on Zuko's shoulder. "I was just informing the Avatar about changes to the war's situation."

"What changes?" Master Pakku asked.

The elderly airbender sighed and pulled the piece of parchment from Zuko's grasp and handed it to the waterbender. The other man nodded his thanks and read over the parchment, his eyebrows first knitting together and then his eyes widened.

"The Fire Nation plans to attack on a lunar eclipse?"

\-----

Master Pakku was quickly pushing his clothing into a small animal skin bag. His hands were hurried, but still remained practiced and exact. Katara watched him from where she sat by his Pai Sho table.

"I'll go with you!" She had, after all, always wanted to visit her sister tribe.

He had stopped their lesson abruptly when a young airbending boy ran up to him in the middle of her almost finally perfecting the octopus form. He'd whispered something into Master Pakku's ear, and the man had quickly dismissed her from her lesson. He had gone to see Master Tenzin, and she had been unable to follow him for very long.

When he had left, he had been in a hurry. He had refused to look at her and he had quickly moved to his rooms. Obviously, she had followed him and made the decision to sit at his Pai Sho table so that she was out of his way.

Her waterbending master shook his head. "No, it would not be good for you to be there," he said.

She raised an eyebrow and crossed her arms over her chest. "Is it because I'm a girl?" she asked.

He paused and slowly turned back toward her. He sighed. "I'm refusing to bring you to the North Pole because it will be very dangerous for you," he said. "The Fire Nation plans to bring an entire army to the North's doorstep on the day of a lunar eclipse."

Her eyes widened. "W-what? But that would—!"

"Possibly destroy the Northern Water Tribe? That's why I must go, Katara, and why you must stay. King Bumi has arranged for me to return home."

"But I could help! I'm not the same as I was when I first—!"

Master Pakku whirled around at her. "Do as I say!"

She flinched slightly, and was about to open her mouth to challenge his words when he sighed and his shoulders visibly sagged. There was a small chest next to his bed, and that's where he moved to.

Master Pakku opened the chest and pulled out a small bundle of scrolls. He turned to her and sighed again, his eyes glancing down at what he held in his hands. He smiled sadly.

"I don't know when I will return, but I expect you to continue practicing while I'm gone," he said. "And eventually, I would like you to start showing the Avatar some of the basics."

He handed the scrolls to her, and she slowly glanced down at them. There, on the ends was the Water Tribe insignia. Excitement bubbled up within her chest, but she also felt a wave of dread curl up the length of her spine.

"Those are more advanced maneuvers that I want you to practice when I'm gone," he said.

_What if Master Pakku never returned?_

She nodded slowly, clutching the scrolls to her chest. "I will."

He smiled softly again, and cast his eyes downward. "If you get a chance to see your grandmother again anytime soon, please give her my well wishes," he said.

Katara's hand flew to the pendant around her neck. She fingered it, the familiar smooth surface soothing her, and smiled with a nod. A part of her wished that Master Pakku would make it back to the Air Nation, and then eventually to the Southern Water Tribe to see her gran-gran again. She had a feeling that her grandmother would like that very much.

\-----

Zhao looked up at the sound of a messenger hawk flying above. It moved in circles, its tail swirling through the wind. The harness that the bird wore unmistakably bore the crest of the Fire Nation Royal Family. He smirked.

The bird landed on the edge of the deck, and Zhao removed the parchment from the bird and broke the seal. He read over what had been written to him, and he felt his smirk grow larger.

"It would seem that in preparation for my upcoming siege, the Fire Lord has decided that a promotion is in order," Zhao said.

"Congratulations, Zhao. What is your new title?"

"I'm an admiral now," he said, scowling slightly. "And it would seem that the Fire Lord has also decided to promote the scum to a captain."

Iroh's eyes widened with delight. "Oh, splendid! I'm sure that Lieutenant, I mean, Captain Aya would love to hear that. It's been over sixteen years since her last promotion, has it not?"

Zhao began to reroll the parchment and he scoffed. "In the last sixteen years, she hasn't done anything for the Fire Nation. She was ordered by Fire Lord Ozai to hunt down the Avatar, and that's the only reason why she even left the country." He handed the scroll to Iroh. "I'm just surprised she hasn't made an attempt to escape yet."

Iroh took the scroll from the younger man and smiled. "That's because the Fire Nation is Captain Aya's home—."

"The Fire Nation is home of the people of the Fire Nation, not some half-breed scum."

Sighing, Iroh clasped his hands behind his back, scroll still in hand. The airbending scum soon appeared by his side, eyes glancing back and forth between the two men. Zhao felt his mouth turn into a sneer.

"You've been promoted to a 'captain'. I find it disgusting that the Fire Lord sought to promote you—"

Her eyes widened.

"Admiral Zhao, I find that gentler and more respectful words are what makes a woman happy."

Zhao felt his body heat up and he abruptly turned to face the old traitor. " _She_ doesn't deserve happiness!"

Iroh narrowed his eyes. "What has Captain Aya ever done to you, Admiral? I have found that it is you that has been doing her harm since you two met!"

"She's some airbending half-breed that I was—!"

"But you forget, that she too was forced into the same situation more so than you were. She didn't have a choice! Fire Lord Azulon wanted more airbenders to train like her! If you think that he would have allowed her to say 'no' that he would have taken her words into consideration?"

Zhao felt his eyebrow twitch. "Of course not, because Fire Lord Azulon realized that the only thing that that airbending whore was good for was lying on her—!"

It was then when Iroh took a step toward Zhao, palm out as if he were to slap him on the cheek. Zhao sneered, and started to bring his hand up toward the older man. If Iroh were to even put his hands on his person, Zhao felt that a little reminder of whose ship the infamous Dragon of the West was on.

Except he felt nothing but the wind on his cheeks.

The airbending scum now stood before him, her shoulders hunched from the impact of his fire on her shoulder. Her clothes, previously red, were now charred black and her skin beneath blistering. In her hand, was General Iroh's clasped in her own. Her entire body was shaking.

"I am no whore," she said softly.

Iroh was staring at her wide-eyed and worried. Zhao scoffed and turned away. He knew that she would be fine, not that he cared.

Victory would soon be his indeed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh, goodness, these last few weeks have been hellacious. I've been working nonstop and find that when I'm not working, I'm trying to do everything that adults do on their days off (cleaning, errands, more cleaning, etc).
> 
> Sorry for the late update!


	12. The City of Omashu

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Work kicked my ass and I was half asleep writing about 50% of this chapter. I'll edit it a bit more later.

Chapter Twelve: The City of Omashu

It was late at night when Katara found herself pacing around her room. The fire crackled in the hearth, and she felt her skin prickle.

Everything felt so wrong. The Fire Nation was heading north to attack her sister tribe, and she couldn't do anything about it. Her waterbending master had left her to assist them three days ago, leaving her in the Air Nation feeling useless and incompetent.

It's to be dangerous, he had said. She would have thought that the best idea was to have the most waterbenders there, but he disagreed with her. The North had plenty of waterbenders, but she was apparently needed elsewhere, he had also said. She was needed to stay behind for Zuko's sake, but since he still had yet to master firebending, she assumed that she could travel to the North Pole and help out and return by the time he needed a waterbender to help him.

_He won't need me for a while, but the Northern Water Tribe needs me._

Katara took a deep breath and glanced around her room, mentally taking stock of what was in her room. It was like something then snapped within her, and she started grabbing everything she had brought with her. Her bag was quickly thrown onto her bed, and her belongings thrust into it messily. She flicked her braid over her shoulder and worked to shove her extra tunic into the bag when she heard a knock at the door.

"What are you doing?"

The voice was muffled behind the door, and it slowly creaked open. She whirled around quickly, chest falling up and down rapidly. Sokka stood at the door, shoulder propped up against the frame and looking ragged. She took a deep breath and turned back to her bag to rearrange her possessions. If her possessions were more neatly packed, she may have room for that extra pair of socks.

"I'm going to the Northern Water Tribe," she said. "I need to help—."

Sokka sighed. "We were told to stay here so that Zuko could master—."

"I know! But how can I stay here knowing that our sister tribe is going to be under attack? They need as many waterbenders as they can get to protect—"

Her brother bowed his head. "I know, Katara, I know. I want nothing more than to help them, but—"

_But I don't want you to come, too._

The thought hit her quickly, and she stiffened. "—we can't," he said.

She was worried for her brother, if he were to come. King Bumi had sent soldiers some of his most trusted men to help train Sokka, but she doubted that his skill had improved to where he could take on Fire Nation soldiers in combat. Waterbending was good, in theory. She could take out men from a distance with a much less chance of being harmed than Sokka. She could fight. She could protect.

"It's late. You should get some sleep. Gyatso's farewell breakfast is tomorrow morning, and I know you'd never forgive yourself if you missed it," her brother teased.

She understood that he meant that the conversation was over, and he didn't want to listen to it any longer. She sighed, and smiled at her brother, slightly irritated by his teasing and at the same time a little bit relieved that he was feeling up to putting humour into their conversation.

Sokka took a couple of steps to her and wrapped his arms around her in a tight hug. "I don't want to lose you, Katara," he said.

This time she stiffened again, but relaxed when he cupped the back of her head. Tears pricked the corners of her eyes and she grasped onto her brother tighter than before.

She couldn't sleep after that.

She spent the majority of the night lying on her back, looking at the ceiling. When the moonlight crept into her room late, she had rolled out of her bed and picked up the pitcher of water that she kept across the room. She took on a position, and practiced pushing and pulling the water to her will.

It soothed her restlessness somewhat, and Katara was grateful that her element had this calming effect on her.

Over the last few weeks, Katara's clumsy movements had become far more refined. By no means was she a master waterbender, but she certainly wasn't that fumbling girl she once was. She felt like if she were ever corned by Fire Nation soldiers, she'd be able to stand her ground…at least, if there was water close by.

She sighed suddenly. She wasn't sure how she'd fare in a fight if she were without water. Her waterbending training had, while left her mostly sore in the body, more lithe and agile. She figured that would most definitely aid in a fight against Fire Nation soldiers.

But nevertheless, Katara decided that it would be best if she made certain that she always had a supply of water on her.

The morning came with Gyatso's farewell breakfast. She was mostly silent throughout the meal, speaking only occasionally to ask for a helping of a portion she couldn't reach out for. The only person really speaking was King Bumi, who had arrived personally to escort him to Omashu.

The old king would excitedly talk about everything from his new clothes to Omashu's mail delivery system. Katara was vaguely able to recall him mentioning something about using it as a ride, which Katara couldn't understand how that worked.

"Avatar Aang and I would frequently ride down the mail delivery system, and would always manage to break a thing or two on the way down!" He cackled and snorted as he slapped Master Tenzin on the back until he was red in the face.

Second to King Bumi, Gyatso and Aang were the only ones talking. The two sat side-by-side, and spoke animatedly of the next time they planned on seeing each other. Aang wished to head to Omashu in one month's time so that they could ride down the mail delivery system, and Gyatso, surprisingly, was playing along.

When it was time for him to leave, Gyatso had his bag thrown over his shoulder and a staff in his hand. He smiled warmly at Katara, and she felt her cheeks heat up slightly. He waved to her and winked.

"I'll see you," he said. "It was lovely to have met you."

She could only nod and watch him leave. Gyatso propped his staff on his shoulder and began to walk away, turning back to wave only once.

Katara wished him all the luck in Omashu, and Aang spoke strongly that he would do very well in the city. She had agreed, and hoped that would be given the chance to see him again. Maybe if she and Aang were still in the Air Nation in one month's time, they could visit—no.

She looked down at the ground and bit her lip. She did not plan on being in the Air Nation in one month's time.

\-----

Zuko watched Gyatso go, and he watched Katara blush as he winked at her. It made him uncomfortable to see it.

"So, Avatar, how is your training coming along?" a voice behind him cackled.

Zuko was jarred at the voice behind him. King Bumi stood behind him, clothed in bright green robes that dragged along the floor and lined with furs. He held his hands together in front of him.

Clearing his throat and side glancing at Gyatso's form that was getting slowly farther away, he peered back at the old king.

"It's, uh, going just fine," he said.

King Bumi smiled. "That's good to hear, you know. With all this talk that the Fire Nation plans to invade the North it's always good to hear some good news. Especially every now and then." The old man snorted. "Well, what are you going to do about the Fire Nation's little promise?"

Zuko raised his eyebrow. "Promise?"

The old king rolled his eyes. "The Fire Nation will very well attack the Northern Water Tribe on the day of the eclipse. The question is now, what are you going to do about it?" he asked.

Zuko sighed. "Master Tenzin would rather I stay in the Air Nation," he said. "To complete my firebending training."

King Bumi appeared to mull over his words, rubbing his beard between his hands thoughtfully. "Well, I can't argue with his logic," he said, "but if you ever decide to take make your own decision in regards to their little promise, you may find me in Omashu. It's a little northeast of the Air Nation, you know."

He felt his eyes widen and his heart stopped. "But I'm only in training—."

"You're the Avatar, and the Avatar must know when it is his turn to leave his home and stop these kinds of things."

"What makes you so sure that I—?"

"I'm old, I'll admit it." King Bumi looked slightly defeated at mentioning that. "So I know these things," he said.

King Bumi sighed, all carefree nature seemingly absent from his face. "There will come a time, young Avatar, when you must make your own decisions to put a stop to this war. No one else can make your decisions for you."

Zuko was about to open his mouth and say something when all seriousness vanished from the old king's face. He suddenly clapped Zuko on the shoulder and smiled. "Well, I must be getting along now. Now it's time for me to play a little game of catch-up with Gyatso, here." The old king cackled and waved as he set off after the young airbender.

\-----

They were walking back to their guestrooms when Katara spotted Zuko. He had been held back by King Bumi, and she decided that the king had simply wanted to ask about his training. Sokka had long since gone back to his room, stating that he was looking for a nap after having been woken up earlier than the usual for Gyatso's breakfast.

She, on the other hand, was used to waking up at dawn for Master Pakku. Not that she needed to anymore.

Glancing back at Zuko, she narrowed her eyes and chewed on her bottom lip. He looked pale and exhausted, and she wondered if he too was taking a nap at this time.

_I need him, she thought, I can't make it to the North Pole all by myself._

She stopped walking and waited for him to catch up. Once he was within earshot, she smiled.

"About to take a nap?" She hoped that her tone came off as playful.

Zuko glanced up at her and grinned. "Maybe for twenty minutes," he said. "Master Tenzin wants me to try the spinning gates again."

She laughed. "Again? What about what happened last time?"

He shrugged. "Well, I guess it better not happen again. Pain is a wonderful teacher, after all," he said.

Being around him like this made her feel lighter, and she smiled and set a slow pace back to the guestrooms. He walked in step beside her.

"Have you been able to airbend at all?" she asked.

He shook his head. "No. Just firebending."

She nodded and looked away. From a small distance across the clearing they walked through, she saw a young airbending child whirl past his mother. He shot up, causing her skirts to nearly fly up. The woman, unsurprised by her son's antics, merely rolled her eyes. Her hair was messy and her clothes covered in a light coat of dust and dirt. Katara assumed it was from her airbending child moving air all around her.

The Air Nation was a wonderful place filled with wonderful people, but they deserved better. The people of the Air Nation deserved their homes back—the Air Temples.

"We can't stay here," she said finally.

Zuko nodded. "We can't," he agreed. "I'm the Avatar, and I can't be the Avatar if I just stay here. It's not my destiny."

"I like it here," she said. "But these people…these people need their homes back."

She watched him swallow, his face turning downward into a slight frown. "And we can't let what happened to them happen again," he said.

She knew he spoke of what was to become of the North, and she nodded in return. Katara chewed on her lower lip. "What are we going to do? What are we going to tell Aang and Sokka?" she asked, her body beginning to hum in approval that Zuko agreed with her.

"We leave in the middle of the night. Tonight."

"And what about—?"

He shook his head. "They'll be against it, but we still need a way to cross the ocean."

"Aang wouldn't. Maybe we should just talk to him about it, he could bring Appa—."

"Master Tenzin is closely watching Aang. He won't be able to get out of here on Appa."

Katara crossed her arms over her chest. "Well, do you have any better ideas?"

"King Bumi…has made some offers," he said sheepishly as he scratched the back of his head.

"But he's a close friend to Master Tenzin!"

Zuko sighed. "He's our only shot to getting out without asking Master Tenzin."

"But how—?"

He briefly squeezed his eyes shut and breathed. "He said something today at Gyatso's farewell breakfast, and he's right. It's time for me to make my own decisions as the Avatar," he said. "He'll help us."

Katara's shoulders sagged and she sighed. "So, Avatar Zuko, what are we doing?"

He straightened his shoulders and looked her in the eye. His words were clear, he made sure of that. "We leave for Omashu tonight once everyone's asleep. Hopefully, we'll be able to arrive in the morning and be on our way north before nightfall."

\-----

After dinner was when Zuko packed his belongings into a small bag. He filled a waterskin with fresh water from his basin and placed it with his full bag, which he hid underneath his bed. It wouldn't do for someone to enter his rooms to find that he hadn't planned on staying in the Air Nation for much longer.

Once everything was packed and hidden, he joined Sokka out in the clearing with his spear in hand. His friend was reclined against an earthen pot, his eyes glancing up at the sky and the stars above. In his lap was his boomerang and its sharpener.

He detested the idea of leaving Sokka behind. It felt so wrong, for he had come so far with him but…Zuko worried for him. If he was being honest with himself, he also didn't want Katara to go with him to the North Pole.

While Katara's waterbending may have improved greatly, there was always a risk that something bad could happen to her. Especially if what the Dragon of the West's letter said came to be true. Sokka would never forgive him for leaving, and all hopes of a reconciliation would be forever shattered if something bad were to happen to Katara.

Zuko gulped. _I honestly fear Katara's anger more if I were to leave her than Sokka's._

From where he sat, Sokka cleared his throat, jarring Zuko out of his thoughts. He glanced down at the slightly younger boy.

"You have an awfully suspicious look on your face, y'know," he said.

Trying to shrug nonchalantly, Zuko moved to sit beside him. It was easier to see now that he was seated that Sokka was tense in the shoulders, and a small crease developed between his eyebrows.

Sokka ran the sharpener across the blade of his boomerang thrice and set it aside and sighed. "Katara's mad at me," he said.

Zuko tried to smile. "She's always mad at you."

"No, this time it's different. She wants to go north—I caught her packing her things last night. She wants to go north to help the sister tribe."

He looked down. "Oh," was all he could say to the boy beside him. "What if we did go north?"

Sokka shook his head and sighed, his cheerful demeanor leaving him swiftly. "I hate to say it, but we'd be outmatched. There's nothing I'd like more than to knock some of their Fire Nation heads around, but I know that I'm nowhere near good enough of a warrior right now to do it," he said.

Zuko glanced down at his hand and clenched it tightly into a fist. "And I'm nowhere near a master firebender."

The other boy shrugged again and raised his boomerang in the air as if to make a toast. "Well, here's to us. The warrior man and the Avatar, working together to become stronger to knock in some Fire Nation heads."

Zuko smiled lightly and unclenched his fist.

He knocked at her door just an hour after midnight. He heard the creak of her bed behind the solid wood, and the soft padding of her feet as she moved closer. There was a beat, where there was no sound but the sound of his own breathing and heartbeat.

The door opened slightly, and Katara stood hesitantly behind it.

"I was almost worried that you weren't coming," she said.

He smiled grimly. "I'm making my own decisions as the Avatar," he said.

She could only nod, and she parted the door further as if to invite him in. He refused to enter, staying only at the doorframe as she turned to grab her things. He watched as she pulled her parka over her head and grabbed her bag. She slung it over her shoulder and then pulled her waterskin across her body. She nodded again, as if to tell him she was ready to go.

There were sentries stationed outside their rooms. Katara left first, stating that she wanted to practice under the moonlight. The guard looked at her suspiciously, but stepped aside. He had briefly taken the time to ask what was in the bag, and Katara told him some food in case she got hungry.

She had appeared jittery when she answered, and Zuko hoped that the guard assumed that she was nervous that she was talking to a guard rather than making a run for it.

He knew that he couldn't leave with his spear and bag in hand.

Zuko did his best to ignore the hammering of his heart in his chest as he retraced his steps back to Katara's room. For five minutes, he stood in the middle of her room, pacing and debating whether or not he should even attempt to try and go back and get past the sentries.

A niggling thought in the back of his head told him that if he did, one of them would dispatch to Master Tenzin and all would be for naught.

He climbed out of the window in the end. Once he had hit the ground, his hands were covered in splinters from the wood paneling, and he hoped that Katara's water would pull them out.

Zuko kept to the shadows, and when he saw a guard making a round, he would press his back to the nearest surface and not move a muscle. He would close his eyes and hold his breath and pray to the spirits that they didn't hear his heartbeat frantically.

And somehow, the spirits answered his prayers. He was able to meet up with Katara, who stood rigidly with her hands wrapped tightly around the straps of her bag.

"There you are! It took you nearly the entire night!"

He frowned. "I had to go back to your room and climb out of your window."

Katara glanced down, and he knew she saw his hands. "What happened to your hands?" she asked, reaching for them.

He looked away, but let her grab onto one. "It's nothing—we need to get going."

Her hands were very warm, yet soothing. She ran them over his palm, and he hissed when she touched a rather sensitive splinter.

"Okay, I'll take care of it when we get out of the Air Nation," she said.

He nodded. "Sounds good."

The hand not carrying his spear dropped to his side as he watched Katara turn to head toward the direction where they entered the Air Nation. It took them around twenty minutes to find the familiar stable they knew housed Appa and the other animals.

Outside the stable sat the boy with the topknot, back leaning against the wall sleeping. To Zuko, it was no wonder how Aang was able to slip out.

"Maybe we should just take Appa," Katara whispered. "I think we'll be able to get him past that guy."

Zuko shook his head. "Something tells me that Aang is the only one that could make Appa quiet down enough to get past everyone," he said.

They walked past the stable and then the old farmhouse. Zuko assumed that the boy lived at the farmhouse, and was in charge of watching the animals and for airbenders who wished to leave home in the middle of the night. He wouldn't be surprised if Master Tenzin stationed him there when Aang mastered airbending, and he wouldn't be surprised if Master Tenzin started paying him since Aang returned.

The familiar tunnel was next before them. Zuko paused in front of it and turned to look over his shoulder. Katara kept on going without him for a few moments, but paused when she realized she was leaving him behind.

"Zuko?" she called out.

He turned around and glanced back down. "I'm the Avatar, and I have to find my own path," he said.

She nodded.

"Staying here…staying here won't do anything for the world."

Katara glanced down, and then back up. She slowly chewed on her bottom lip before reaching her hand out for his. "Come on," she said, "it's like you said—we need to get going."

He started moving again until the tunnel engulfed them both. It was dark, and Zuko found himself reaching out to touch the wall to make sure he wasn't going toward a dead end. Remembering Sokka's words when they first arrived, he lit a small flame in the ball of his hand and illuminated the tunnel in orange and yellow light.

Katara blinked, almost mesmerized by the light in the palm of his hand. She smiled and continued moving, and he followed.

It took them nearly an hour, Zuko guessed, to make it out of the tunnel. He was so relieved to reach the opening and to breathe fresh air once again. Katara turned to him and smiled, and Zuko felt his heart stammer.

"Well, we made it out," he said weakly.

She opened her mouth and was about to say something, but stopped when they heard the distinct sound of rocks sliding. Zuko gripped his spear tighter and stepped in front of Katara. He felt her move behind him in what he assumed was probably a bending stance.

Six men moved out of nearby bushes. Most of them looked unhappy, but still bowed their heads to them.

"King Bumi informed us that you may pass through here, Avatar," one of them said.

Zuko nodded. "And are you going to let me pass?"

He watched the guard's hands clench tight. "I do not wish to, but I know you must," he said.

It hit him then that these men were stationed to protect the Air Nation under King Bumi's orders. Over the years, they have no doubt formed a deep respect and great relationship with Master Tenzin and the citizens of the Air Nation, and hoped that one day they would be able to be free to roam like the Air Nomads in the old days. The Avatar was the only hope for that to happen again, and while they wanted him safe in the Air Nation, they also understood that their king knew that he couldn't stay in the safe haven that was provided to him.

"Thank you," he managed.

They stepped aside, allowing him and Katara to pass. He chanced one glance at them. He wanted to turn to them and promise that when he returned, the world would be a better place, but he couldn't do it. He couldn't find it in himself to promise something that may not come to pass.

Once they were outside of the protective Air Nation, Katara grabbed onto his sleeve and gestured for him to sit. He did as commanded, and she gently took his hands into her own.

"This looks painful," she said.

He nodded. "Can you—?"

"Yes," she said.

She didn't say a word as she pulled out the largest ones closest to the surface of his skin. There were a couple of times when Zuko had to bite his tongue to refrain from cursing aloud. Once the ones that she could grab with her blunt nails were removed, Katara uncapped her water skin and pulled her element out. She rested it atop his hands, took a deep breath, and the water glowed brightly under the moonlight.

The water was soothing to his skin, and it felt strange as the water seeped deep into him and worked around the splinters. There were moments when the pull of the splinters would sting, and he knew he would grimace. Katara would apologize for causing him the pain, and then continue her work.

When she returned the water to its place, Zuko glanced down at his hands and flexed them. They still twinged a little, but they felt much better.

"Thank you," he said.

She smiled and pulled the water skin back over her shoulder. "We should get going," she said. "They'll figure out that I don't plan on going back to my room soon."

He stood to his feet and looked up from his hands. "We have to go northeast," he said. "King Bumi told me that's where we'll find Omashu."

She nodded. "Lead the way," she said.

\-----

They next few hours were hard. The first two hours were not that bad, but after that second hour; Zuko could feel the fatigue beginning to settle in. Behind him walked Katara, and he worried for her. Her pace was growing slower and slower, and she lacked the ability to walk in a straight line.

They took a small break once the third hour began. He looked over at Katara and noticed her eyes drooping as she began to lean hard onto her bag.

Zuko thought about suggesting that they stop and rest for an hour, thinking that sleep would be good for them both, but he doubted that he'd be able to reawaken in an hour.

They sat for twenty minutes before he once again stood to his feet and offered his hand down to her. She groaned audibly and took it. She stumbled a little, but was able to regain her footing as she grabbed onto her bag and slung it over her shoulder.

When the sun started to rise over the horizon, Zuko groaned. "I say we stop here for a couple of hours and get some sleep," he said.

Katara nodded. "Agreed."

The both of them just dropped their belongings to the ground. Zuko briefly thought about lighting a fire to keep them warm, but thought against it when he realized he would have to look around for a way to fuel the fire and decided he just didn't have the energy for it.

Katara was the first one to snuggle down on the ground with her bag as a pillow. She pulled her parka even tighter around her body. She fell asleep almost immediately, and Zuko smiled tiredly. He got down beside her, pressing his back against hers and snuggling into his own parka. Listening to her shallow breathing lulled him to sleep quickly.

He awakened a few hours later to the sound of birds chirping above. He moved to lift his head, and found that in doing so that his entire body was sore from traveling. He could still feel Katara beside him, and from what he could guess, she was still fast asleep.

Sitting up, he took a couple of seconds to drink in the sight of Katara huddled up inside her parka, cheeks rosy and mouth slightly open as she slept on. Zuko knew that she'd sleep the day away if he didn't do anything, so he gently touched her shoulder and shook her.

"Wha—?" She moved to sit up.

She was slightly disorientated from sleep, and moved to rub her eyes. "How long were we asleep?" she asked.

Zuko shrugged. "It's at least close to noon," he said. "I think we slept too long."

He was thankful that they had managed to fall asleep in a spot that had warmed up as the day continued on. It was still cold, without a doubt, and Zuko took a deep breath to try and increase his inner temperature.

Zuko slowly pulled himself up and grabbed his bag and spear. Pushing the bag over his shoulder and holding onto the spear with one hand, he reached for Katara again and pulled her to her feet. She groaned again and reached down to pick up her things.

"I didn't think that I'd be this sore," she said.

"I feel the same."

They started moving again, ignoring the rumbling in their empty bellies. They had stopped for too long, and at this point Master Tenzin no doubt knew that they had left. He wouldn't be surprised if earthbenders within the Air Nation were after them right now.

It was only two more hours longer before they stopped in front of a city surrounded by high walls and a massive gate. Guards were stationed outside the gate, and Zuko had a feeling they would have a similar reaction as the guards outside the Air Nation.

The two approached the gate, and one of the guards narrowed his eyes and lifted a boulder from the earth and seemingly dangled it over their heads. Katara took a step back. Zuko narrowed his eyes in return at the guard.

"State your business," the guard said.

He gripped his spear tighter. "I'm the Avatar," he said. "And I believe that King Bumi is expecting me."

The guard exchanged a glance with the other and let the boulder fall away from them. The other made a gesture, and soon the gate fell away to reveal the city within.

Omashu was the largest city Zuko had ever seen. It had winding roads and tall buildings. Lines that dangled clothes ran from some of the buildings.

Katara was looking up at everything, much like him. Her eyes were alight with childlike wonder. Zuko wondered if he looked the same. Momentarily, they forgot about the pain in their muscles and the emptiness of their bellies. At the moment, they were too enthralled by the great city before them.

"I've never seen such large buildings!"

The Air Nation, and all the other villages they had visited in the Earth Kingdom, did not have large structures such as this. It was almost mesmerizing.

But was most mesmerizing, was the mail delivery system.

Carts shot down slopes by the influence of earthbending going at incredible speeds whirled past them. Even at midday, the earthbenders were hard at work utilizing the city's most unique feature.

"Oi, get out of my way!" A man pushing a card waved his fist at them.

Zuko reached down and grabbed Katara by the hand, pulling her out of the way. She gasped in surprise, and turned to look at the cart-pusher.

"I'm sorry!"

"Pfft, tourists!" the man scoffed.

Katara narrowed her eyes at the man pushing a cart full of vegetables. "Hey! Just because—!"

Movement out of the corner of his eye caught his attention, and Zuko silenced Katara with a wave of his hand. Four Earth Kingdom soldiers approached them, and from what Zuko could tell, all four were earthbenders.

"Is there a problem?" one asked.

The man who pushed the carts whirled around with his hands on his hips. "Yes, there is a problem! Since when does Omashu allow tourists such as these two within its walls? They're getting in my way, and if they continue to do so will detract from—!"

"Silence, merchant!"

The old cart pusher immediately quieted and the soldiers turned to look at him and Katara.

"You two aren't from around here, are you?"

They both shook their head.

"The king is expecting you, then," the soldier said.

The merchant sputtered, glancing from the two of them to the soldiers. No one paid him any attention as they walked past him.

As they continued to move through Omashu, many of its citizens stopped what they were doing to whisper and point at them. The soldiers acted as if this wasn't happening before them, and Zuko didn't understand how they were able to do so. He felt like he was being dissected…or that he had a hole in his trousers.

Though he did suppose they looked a little odd. It probably wasn't everyday that a travel-weary duo of teenagers appeared within the walls of Omashu clothed in Water Tribe blue. Zuko's parka, also, had a large scorch mark on the side. A woman in the Air Nation had done her best to try and patch it, but was unable to completely match the colour. That, and the fact that he carried around a whale-tooth spear.

Once they reached King Bumi's palace, many well-dressed citizens pointed and whispered in each other's ear. Zuko felt his ears heat up and he did his best to look forward and continue up the stairs to where King Bumi resided.

When the palace doors opened, they moved through a great hall first. It was adorned in a way Zuko expected of a monarch of the Earth Kingdom, being covered in nice green and gold tapestries. Guards moved around briskly at their entrance.

Another set of doors was opened, and Zuko knew this was where he would meet the king yet again. King Bumi was sat on an odd-looking throne clothed in bright yellow. He smiled when they entered the room.

"Ah! Avatar Zuko! I knew you'd show up!" King Bumi cackled. "Oh, and you brought the little Water Tribe girl, how delightful! The two of you can stay in the newly refurbished chambers tonight—."

Katara stepped forward, her hands behind her back. "Actually, we're thinking of getting going today—."

King Bumi's eyes widened. "Oh, planning to leave early without any supper, are we?"

Katara's eyes widened. "That's not it! It's just that…" She glanced at Zuko out of the corner of her eye. "Help me out, Zuko," she whispered.

The boy beside her cleared his throat. "Yes! We need to leave!"

King Bumi rubbed the hair of his beard between two fingers and seemed to think over their words. "Hmm, I guess I see your point. Time is of the essence, as a matter of fact! Now, follow me!"

He cackled, and Katara glanced over at Zuko. "I think his crown's a little crooked," she whispered.

Zuko could only nod.

He inwardly groaned when King Bumi moved off of his throne and started down a hallway. His body was tired and sore, and while he wanted to head north as soon as possible, he did want a moment to sit and eat a little something before doing much else.

And why did King Bumi have to move so quickly?

"I imagine that the two of you would appreciate something in your bellies before you go, yes?"

Katara nodded beside him. "Yes, thank you!"

The king gestured with his right hand toward a door they were nearly past. "In there is where you'll be fed. I hope you like roast chicken."

Zuko had hoped that they would stop, because the smell of the roast chicken caused his belly to groan loudly. King Bumi cackled madly at it and clicked his tongue.

"Not yet, Avatar," he said.

They stepped outside yet again, but didn't walk very far before King Bumi abruptly stopped outside a large stable. He pushed open the wooden door and appeared to glance around. His face illuminated brightly when he appeared to figure out what he wanted to do.

"Ah! And here is your method of transportation!"

King Bumi cackled and stepped back. Katara and Zuko peered around the old king, and they both groaned.

There stood two ostrich horses feeding on hay.

_Spirits, save us all._


	13. The Hunter

Chapter Thirteen: The Hunters

It wasn't unusual for Katara to be absent for breakfast and lunch. Usually she spent the majority of her mornings training rigorously with Master Pakku, which gave Sokka ample time to eat without her commenting on how much he ate and how long he slept compared to her.

Usually, by evening, Katara was ready for a warm meal. Roast chicken with a side of fresh peas was her new favourite since arriving to the Air Nation. And since Zuko had also decided it was his favourite, too, it was made often.

Deciding to put his sister's absence on hold, Sokka merely shrugged and tore into a chicken leg. Aang, who was seated across from him, grimaced and looked around.

"Hey Sokka, where's Katara? She's usually here by now."

He stopped chewing. "Isn't she training with—."

_Wait. Master Pakku left for the Northern Water Tribe._

Sokka looked around for Zuko, who was also nowhere in sight. It wasn't uncommon that Zuko was late for a meal, due to being pushed hard by both Masters Jeong Jeong and Tenzin, but to be completely absent from all three was worrisome.

Sokka swallowed and let his food rest on his plate. "Have you seen Zuko?" he asked.

Aang shook his head, and his eyebrows rose. "No, I haven't seen either of them. And Zuko wasn't at his airbending lesson today."

"Something's not right…"

He glanced around the room, only to see that a woman whispered into Master Tenzin's ear as he sat down to receive his supper. His eyes widened, but he quickly schooled his features.

"Master Tenzin's been acting a bit funny today, too. Like he's keeping something from me," Aang said.

"Is he?" Sokka asked.

Aang shrugged. "I dunno, probably. He doesn't like to tell me things because he's worried that I'll run away again."

"To be fair, you did run away once."

Aang groaned. "I know I did! But I came back!"

"But you _ran away_!"

"I had a good reason to!" Aang protested. "I had to find the Avatar!"

"Well, if you hadn't come, then we would all still be in the South Pole…without all this mystical Avatar stuff!"

Aang immediately recoiled. "But don't you want this war to end? Don't you want the fighting to be over?" he asked.

Sokka sighed and ran a hand over his face. He felt bad about his words almost immediately after he said them, but it was the truth. If Aang hadn't landed in the South Pole, then he'd still be at home. Katara would still be at home, safe. He would still be training, and teasing, Zuko at home.

"I do," he said. "But I'd rather my little sister not be a part of it."

It wasn't until after the evening meal that Sokka was able to slip away from his guestroom and toward Master Tenzin's residence. He paused outside his rooms, his ear pressed against the thin door. Behind it, were quick murmurings of "gone north" and "the Avatar needs to return to the Air Nation."

Anger and frustration unfurled within Sokka, and he pushed the door open with his shoulder and stood rigid in the frame.

"Where's my sister." He demanded.

Master Tenzin looked shocked to see him there. "We assume that she has gone north with the Avatar to aid the Water Tribe against an attack by the Fire Nation."

_"I'm going to the Northern Water Tribe,"_ she had said. _"I need to help—."_

Sokka squeezed his eyes shut. It was his responsibility to keep her safe, and she was making it very difficult for him to do so. He would never be able to live with himself if something were to happen to her, and he was sure that their father would also do everything in his power to never let Sokka forget about what he had failed to do.

"I'm going after her," he said.

Master Tenzin sighed. "Then I won't stop you," he said.

Sokka looked up at him, and he felt anger building up below his skin. He greatly understood why Aang was not to leave the Air Nation, and to a level of degree, he also understood why Zuko was also forbidden to leave. But what he didn't like was that he was seemingly permitted to leave as soon as he decided that was his wish. And Sokka couldn't help but decide that was how they felt about Katara's departure, as well.

"Do you even care that my sister is missing?" he asked. "Do you even care at all?"

He looked up, and Master Tenzin looked taken aback. "I do care," he said softly. "It's just that for the sake of the world that the Avatar is brought back to us."

"I can tell you, right now, that if Katara isn't brought back safely then your chances of the Avatar coming back are zero."

Master Tenzin sighed. "I understand your frustration with Katara's absence, but—."

Sokka clenched his fists tighter. "But nothing! Katara is literally the most frustrating little sister on the planet, but I would give anything to make sure she's safe! Because if Dad or Gran-Gran were to find out that I _lost_ her in the middle of the _Earth Kingdom_ they would kill me!"

Master Tenzin smiled sadly. "I had a sister once, and Katara slightly reminds me of her."

Sokka paused, and Master Tenzin continued. "Her name was Anai, and ever since she disappeared many decades ago, I have no idea if she is alive or dead."

Sokka furrowed his brow and was about to protest when the older man held up a hand to silence him.

"I'm not saying that you won't see Katara for many decades, but I'm saying is that I know what it is like to have a sister with an adventurous streak.

"She was so good. So very good, and I'm almost sure that the Fire Nation took her."

"The Fire Nation won't be taking Katara. I may be mad to the Spirit World and back that she left with Zuko, but I know that he wouldn't let anything bad happen to her as long as he's alive.

"But I've got to go get my sister," he said.

Master Tenzin bowed his head. "Then I wish you good luck, Sokka of the Southern Water Tribe. In the stables, you may look to see if there is an ostrich horse to your liking."

Sokka nodded his head and turned. He left Master Tenzin alone and headed back toward the guestrooms. He needed to grab his things and head to the stables. The illogical side of his brain was telling him to damn his things and head to the stables, but the logical side reminded him that he needed his water canteen and weapons.

"So, are you really leaving?" a voice asked from the shadows.

Sokka turned to see Aang walk out, a cloak wrapped around his shoulders with the hood drawn up. "Well, are you?"

Sokka nodded. "I have to find my sister," he said.

"Then I'm coming, too!"

Sokka turned back toward the airbender. "No, Aang, you need to stay here this time."

Aang crossed his arms over his chest. "Well then, how're you gonna get out of here?" he asked.

"I'm—I'm going to take an ostrich horse!" Sokka stopped and rubbed his chin a little. He'd never ridden one before, but it couldn't be that difficult.

"It's gonna be a looong, uncomfortable ride to the North Pole, Sokka." Aang stood on his toes until he was almost the same height as Sokka. "Wouldn't it be nice if you had a sky bison to give you a lift?"

"How would you get out? I'm pretty sure they would only be all right if I left," he said.

Aang shrugged his shoulders. "I can think of a few ways."

Sokka groaned. "Then come on, before I change my mind."

"Oh, I can? I guess Appa and I can give you a lift…."

Sokka turned back toward the guestrooms and Aang followed. "Don't you have to pack your things?"

"Oh, I already have my things packed Sokka," he said.

For the first time in his life, Sokka was happy that he had so few belongings with him. It was much easier for him to pack his things into a bag and throw it over his shoulder.

Aang led him back to the stables near the old farmhouse. Appa stood ready for them, reins already tied around his horns and saddle already on his back.

"I've had him ready since dinner," he said.

Sokka decided not to question whether or not someone asked Aang what he was doing. He could only infer that the Air Nation had been so preoccupied with the small fact that the Avatar had gone missing under their noses that Aang could prepare Appa undetected.

Aang led him carefully out of the stables and Sokka tossed his bag into the saddle. He climbed into Appa's saddle, slightly excited that he was about to fly again. Aang remained on the ground, his hands clutching onto Appa's reins as he led him toward the tunnel.

The tunnel was as dark and depressing as Sokka had remembered it. There was nothing he could do to suppress the shudder that ran down his spine as they entered.

It took them an hour to get through it completely, and almost immediately the guards posted outside stopped them. Sokka hadn't even had time to properly breathe in proper un-tunneled air yet.

"State your business, Master Aang!" one of the guards called out.

Aang shrugged his shoulders. "Uhh, I'm off to find the Avatar?"

The guards braced themselves, readying themselves to attack. "Master Tenzin explicitly told us that under no circumstance that you are allowed to leave."

The airbender shrugged again. "Well, I think I'm going to have to disobey my grandfather again," he said.

The earth rippled beneath Aang's feet and Aang launched himself in the air. He landed on the ground again, moving so swiftly and lightly that the guards were unable to capture him beneath the earth.

He swirled around so deftly until the air moved out and knocked into the guards, effectively throwing off their stances. Aang didn't miss a beat, and he launched himself up and landed on Appa's head. He held onto the reins and smiled back at Sokka. "You ready?" he asked

Sokka nodded and held onto the edge of Appa's saddle. He looked over to see the guards clambering to their feet and pointing at Appa.

"Don't let them leave!" they cried.

"Yip-yip!" Aang called out, slapping the reins down.

Appa's tail smacked against the ground, and soon they were launched high into the air. Beneath them, the earth had tried to pull them back down—to keep them rooted, but failed. Sokka knew that they wouldn't do anything that could potentially hurt Aang, and once the earthbender guards were mere dots, Sokka knew that they had gotten away.

\-----

They traveled for nearly four days straight, only stopping for relief and sparse sleep. Their ostrich horses were exhausted and were growing fussy from the lack of rest.

Katara dismounted from her ostrich horse with a light thud. She sighed and pulled the reins and wrapped them around her hands. "I'm going to start setting up camp," she said.

Zuko looked up toward the sky, sparsely seen glittering through the leaves above. Despite being tired, he didn't want to stop yet. He still had enough energy to keep going for a few more hours, but he knew that it would be best not to over exert the ostrich horses.

They tied their mounts to a fallen tree and went about the clearing. Katara gathered wood for a small fire and water for drinking, while Zuko took ahold of his spear and set off to look for something to eat. His stomach rumbled just thinking about eating meat, as they'd been living off of bread for the past four days.

He returned with a small elephant rat in hand to see that Katara had sticks ready for lighting in a circle. And on two separate sticks, she had two fish speared.

"Oh, perfect timing."

Wordlessly, he passed her the elephant rat and knelt beside the kindling. It took only a deep breath and a small spark before the fire began to consume the sticks and the small clearing was lit.

"What's this?" she asked, holding up the elephant rat.

He shrugged. "I didn't think you were going to catch any fish, so I caught you an elephant rat," he said.

"Me?"

"Well, I figured you were tired of bread by now."

"That's nice of you."

He reached over into his bag that she had pulled from his ostrich horse and removed a small knife from it. It was nothing extravagant, but it was sharp enough to clean the elephant rat. He handed it to her and she glanced it over.

"There's not much meat on it," she said. "But maybe if I had a pot it'd still make a pretty nice stew?"

Now Zuko felt the fatigue setting into his bones, and he just fell back in the dirt with a thump. He would've groaned, but he figured that Katara wouldn't appreciate that so he refrained.

"Guess I just have to roast it, then."

He let his eyes remain closed for five minutes before he got up to hold his fish over the fire. And for the first time in four days, they weren't having bread, and he couldn't be happier about that. Not that Zuko had anything against bread. It was a wonderful baked good that he'd never had the pleasure of eating since he came to the Earth Kingdom, but he found that meat offered a more wholesome meal.

The fish was good, if bland. It sated his rumbling belly more than the bread ever could. Katara completely finished her fish and ate part of the elephant rat, only to give the rest to him. She was completely right when she had said there was only a little meat on the small animal, as he only had two bites before only the meat was left.

They fell asleep on their bedrolls side by side, with the fire burning low. Katara lay closest to the fire, and Zuko found it almost comforting to have fallen asleep with a warm glow around her beside him.

Zuko didn't know how long they were asleep until the sound of something large crashed through the forest. The splintering of the trees was deafening and the rumbling below his body was terrifying. He was on his feet immediately, spear in hand as he dashed toward the source.

He stopped when he heard the loud screech of something big and unlike anything he's ever heard before. It sounded terrified and pained.

"What was that?"

Katara was beside him, disheveled from sleep and with her water skin clutched tightly to her person. All he could do was shake his head at her.

Another screech, now sounding more like a wail, shook the forest and Katara shot forward. He tried to reach for her, only feeling the brush of her tunic's fabric against his fingers.

"Katara!"

She kept going, and he took off after her. They jumped over old logs and scurried past bushes until she stopped short behind a large tree. He almost ran into her back when she recoiled, her hand flying to her mouth to stifle a gasp.

Zuko braced his hand on the tree and looked around, his eyes widening and his breath catching in his throat at what he saw.

It was huge, much larger than Aang's sky bison. It had a long tail that thrashed about, knocking into trees and taking down the weaker ones. Leaves fell from the trees above and two men laughed almost hysterically.

"This one'll fetch us a might'y nice price in Ba Sing Se, whatcha think?"

"Yeah, he'll do."

The two men were earthbenders, and they had pinned the mighty creature down with heavy boulders. By its wings, Zuko noticed. It let out a pained howl, its head moving from side to side in an attempt to wiggle out from beneath the boulders.

"Zuko, that's a dragon," Katara whispered.

Smoke furled out of the creature's nostrils, and Zuko found himself blinking furiously at the sight.

It was a dragon, and it appeared exhausted and young. That was the only explanation he could think of as to how two earthbending hunters could take down a dragon by themselves.

"Whad'ya mean 'e'll do'? We've been lookin' all over for 'im since was saw 'im fly over!" the other protested.

The smaller earthbender pointed at the bound creature. "How're we gonna get him to Ba Sing Se, Jirou? He's too heavy for the cart!"

The gasp beside him wasn't a surprise. Katara shifted behind the bushes and glanced over at him. The fatigue had washed away from her features, only to be replaced with anger…and to a degree, a sadness. It glanced in their direction, almost as if it were beckoning them to come for it.

"We can't let them do this," Katara whispered.

Even in the darkness, Zuko could see that Katara was up to something. The look in her eye was reminiscent of someone telling her that she couldn't do something...which from Zuko's experience, he knew was something one did not do.

Internally groaning, he asked, "What are you going to do?"

Katara blinked. " _We're_ going to set him free," she said.

"How?"

Katara took a deep breath. "I don't know." And she rose from her place behind the bushes and pushed through.

"Katara, wait!" Any further, and she would reveal herself to the hunters.

Zuko reached his hand out for her, but she slipped right through his fingers.

\-----

It was the right thing to do, Katara had decided. It may not be the smartest, most well-thought out action for two people hiding in the Earth Kingdom…but it was the right thing. Katara knew she would not be able to rest easy at night knowing that a couple of hunters took down a dragon, a creature she had only heard about in stories, only to sell it.

Her abrupt appearance startled the two men, who paused and looked her over. She placed her hand on her water skin and gripped the cap.

"Look, Kenta, it's a girl."

"I can see that, Jirou!"

She swallowed any developing anxiety and rooted her feet into the dirt. "Let him go!" she called.

The two earthbenders glanced over at each other and promptly laughed. Gritting her teeth, Katara unscrewed the cap to her water skin and pulled the water out slightly. She narrowed her eyes and slid one foot forward.

"Now, now, lil' lady, I don' want to hurt you," the man called Jirou said.

She heard a rustle of leaves behind her.

"You better listen to her," Zuko said. "Most people regret it later when they don't."

Zuko stood beside her, spear clasped in two hands and resting almost casually against his shoulder. Though, she knew better to think that Zuko wasn't ready for the fight. She smirked.

"I don' think we've ever fought a waterbender before," Jirou said as he got into an earthbending stance.

Kenta, the other man, mimicked Jirou's footwork.

Katara took two steps forward, her arms and fingers moving gracefully as the water arced toward the men. It wasn't as fast as she would have liked it to be, but it took Kenta by surprise when it knocked into him.

Jirou made a wall in front of his friend, blocking the rest of her attack and letting the water fall to the ground. Katara furrowed her brow and glanced down, and pulled it out of the dirt. She was about to look back up at her opponent when she felt Zuko grab onto her sleeve and pull her away as a rock shot past her.

"Keep your eyes on your opponent!" he called.

She had lost the water again in the dirt, and she grit her teeth. Blood pounded in her ears as she straightened back up and braced herself. Zuko didn't wait for her to make another move, because he ran past her toward Jirou.

Jirou stomped down pulling some of the earth from the ground once more, and launched it toward Zuko. Zuko didn't stop moving toward his target, and he barely sidestepped the rock as he closed the distance on his Jirou and swung his spear. At last minute, Jirou had created a sturdy rock shield that on impact, broke Zuko's spear at the whale-tooth blade.

Katara started running forward too, slightly hesitant at being so close to an opponent who could bend a solid element. She didn't know what Zuko was going to do now with his spear out of commission. He only knew how to bend fire, and he was slightly reluctant to do so.

She pulled the water out of the earth once more and whipped it around as quickly as she could toward Kenta, who was about to make a move against Zuko. She took him by surprise this time, and watched in satisfaction as the water collided against his side, knocking him down. Katara called the water up again and wrapped it around Kenta, freezing him still.

Taking a step back away from the downed man, Katara heard a sharp cracking noise from where Jirou and Zuko stood. The rock shield that had separated the two split into two, the top half shooting forward and barely missing Zuko's torso. With a movement of his arm, the bottom half split in two and each were thrown to Zuko. He was about to move away when they all broke into tiny pieces and moving quickly toward his body.

"Zuko!"

She was powerless to do anything from where she stood. All of her water was wrapped around Kenta. She watched as Zuko stepped back, to the side, and then to the side again. He avoided the larger bits, but couldn't avoid all as she watched as a series of small rocks cut into him.

His body was making jerking motions with each hit, and she tried her best to ignore the sick feeling rising up within her. Tears pricked her eyes, and she wished at that moment that she were an airbender or an earthbender to stop it.

And just like that, Zuko's body stood up straighter and the barrage of small rocks stopped. They froze in mid air, and Jirou took a step back. His eyes were wide and he appeared terrified.

Katara wiped a tear out of the corner of her eyes and glanced at Zuko, who stood straight. His hands were pulled into fists, and it was like gusts of wind were whirling around him. She then was able to feel it brushing against her, and her eyes widened.

_Oh, no._

All the remaining small rock fragments soon shot back toward Jirou. All Zuko had to do was take a shaky step forward and swipe his arm toward Jirou. The hunter took a step back and tried to create a new shield, but it shattered as if it were glass before he had the chance to fully erect it.

The heavy boulders holding the dragon's wings down shuddered, and Katara watched in awe as Zuko rose his arms and they were lifted and tossed aside as if it were nothing. The dragon glanced at Zuko, and Katara wanted to yell out for him to _run_ , to _get away_ because the stories she heard about dragons were never that they were gentle.

As if the hunters that lay on the earthen floor meant nothing, Zuko moved past them until he stood before the red dragon. The mighty creature rose straighter, and looked as if it were regarding Zuko.

Zuko placed his hand on the dragon's head. Both closed their eyes, and the dragon let out a sound that had Katara dropping her hand by her side and moving closer to the two. At this, Zuko seemed to calm, and when he opened his eyes again they were that same golden that she was used to and not the glowing white like they had been the last time he had fought with other elements. He looked exhausted, beaten, and ready for a long sleep.

An enraged Jirou abruptly staggered upward, the earth below their feet rumbling. "You will not take 'im! I don' even care that you're—!"

A tree branch overhead snapped and a figure landed behind Jirou. He wielded two hooked swords and a smirk, and with a flick of his wrist, curled one end of a sword around Jirou's ankle and tugged. The man fell flat on his face, whimpering in defeat.

Katara and Zuko both looked up at the smirking figure. He stood rather tall, had shaggy brown hair and rather dark brown eyes. A piece of a straw stuck out of his mouth.

"Hi, I'm Jet," he said.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm a terrible human! D:


	14. The Freedom Fighters

Chapter Fourteen: The Freedom Fighters

The dragon had been startled by Jet's sudden appearance and was clearly not up for being in the presence of multiple humans. As soon as Jet approached, curious and wide-eyed at the sight of a mighty and rare dragon, the creature immediately spread its wings with a shriek and set off through the trees.

Branches were broken and leaves were scattered everywhere as it escaped. Zuko and Katara could only stare up blankly as it got away from them, and Zuko was happy that it was free.

The two poachers lay prone and groaning from where they had been defeated. Clearly, they understood that standing down was the best option for their survival, and Zuko decided that that was the best decision they had made that day.

"You guys standing up against those poachers was very brave," said Jet. "Especially since there's only two of you."

Katara glanced at the taller boy out of the corner of her eye and smiled. "Thank you," she said.

"We've been watching them for a while. We suspect that they've been trading to Fire Nation bigwigs these days because many in the Earth Kingdom can't give them what they want. "

Jet prodded the nearest poacher with the tip of his curved blade. He smirked. "Anyway, you two never got the chance to tell me your names," he said.

Zuko was about to open his mouth when Katara stepped forward. Her eyes were bright and the smile on her face was…too much. He immediately felt sick to his stomach and annoyed.

"I'm Katara, and this is—."

"Zuko."

Zuko, who had been propped up against a tree as Katara looked over his wounds, unsteadily stood to his feet. He was a little shorter than Jet, even when he straightened his spine and rolled his shoulders back with a wince.

Jet gave, in Zuko's opinion, a fake smile. "Katara, Zuko, it's a pleasure to meet you two."

Katara beamed up at him. "Thank you! The pleasure's all ours!"

Zuko had to bite the inside of his cheek to muffle the scoff he almost let out.

"You mentioned a 'we'," Zuko said. "Who exactly is 'we'?"

Jet leaned back, almost as if he was appraising Katara and ignoring Zuko. "Waterbending, eh? That sounds useful and very cool," he said.

Katara blushed and Zuko rolled his eyes, seething. She gave her thanks to Jet once again and Zuko wished that he wasn't in pain from the earthbending poacher's attacks. And that he could waterbend, too.

He felt his entire body heat up at the apparent snub, and Zuko was quite certain that he tasted blood when he bit down again.

The wind picked up slightly around him, and he watched as Katara shivered slightly and Jet reached up to the back of his neck to give it a scratch.

"It's starting to get a little cold. Why don't you guys come back to our camp?"

 _'We', 'our'. How many people live in this forest with this guy,_ Zuko thought.

He almost wanted to groan aloud when Katara nodded eagerly.

"But just as a precaution, we're going to have to blind fold you guys."

Zuko's eyes widened and he felt the back of his neck prickle with recognition that someone was suddenly behind him. He turned quickly, seeing a large boy wearing an odd combination of mismatched armour holding up a piece of dirty cloth. He tried to give him an easy-going smile and pull the cloth over his eyes, but Zuko jerked backwards.

He winced at the pain caused by the movement and he cursed the spirits for breaking his spear during the fight with the poachers.

"Get away from me," he said.

The larger boy frowned. "But this'll just take a second."

He moved farther away from the boy and stole a glance over at Katara to see how she was faring. He couldn't suppress the groan this time that burst out of his mouth when he saw her blindfolded and seemingly at ease.

_Sokka is going to kill me._

The large boy tried to go at him again, and Zuko sidestepped him again. He made sure to move on the tips of his toes, allowing him for quicker movement. Except that the boy was quick, too. Despite his size, he was able to move swiftly and had excellent reflexes that if Zuko weren't running purely on adrenaline, he probably would've easily been subdued in his wounded state.

The boy seemingly dove for him, and Zuko was able to push himself out of the way until he had put a considerable distance between his opponent. He immediately got into a bending stance and narrowed his eyes.

"C'mon, we haven't got all day," called Jet. "Just let Pipsqueak blindfold you and we'll be off to our camp."

Pipsqueak, as the large boy was apparently named, moved toward him again. He distantly heard the sound of a whistle, and before he could register that it was coming from a smug-looking Jet, he felt a heavy force bear down on his shoulders.

Zuko immediately fell to his knees, and bit his tongue to force himself not to cry out despite the pain. A musty smelling cloth was forced over his eyes, and Zuko tried to get away from his attacker.

"Don't hurt him!" he heard Katara call out. "He's just being stubborn. He'll calm down in a second."

"We're not hurting him, we're just blindfolding him," he heard Jet tell her.

He struggled against the person blindfolding him, but to no avail. He felt Pipsqueak's large hands clasp around his wrists to hold them in place. He was unable to break away.

 _Unless I used firebending,_ he thought, _but that's probably not going to be a good idea._

"Now then. Let's get going. I'm getting a little hungry and I'm sure you guys are too!"

Jet sounded too cheery, and it made Zuko uneasy.

Pipsqueak only had his wrists clasped in one of his meaty hands and the other on his shoulder, directing him. Slightly ahead, he heard Jet seemingly in an excited fashion chatting with Katara about how much she'd like their camp.

They moved through the forest for what seemed like an eternity to Zuko. Every step was agonizingly slow both literally and figuratively, and he wanted nothing more to rip himself away from Pipsqueak and free Katara and just run back to their ostrich horses. He did not trust these guys, and he refused to. There was something off about them.

He counted each breath that he took, and each one got closer and closer to him deciding to firebend the spirits out of Pipsqueak's hand and deliver a sharp kick to his groin. He counted down to when he could unleash every bit of fire he had in him on Jet to get him away from Katara when they suddenly stopped.

The musty blindfold was roughly jerked away from his eyes and Zuko had to blink a couple of times to readjust to the sudden reappearance of light.

Katara stood just a couple of steps away from him, staring around the trees in awe. For some reason, it made anger curl in Zuko's belly.

"Welcome to our camp. We're the Freedom Fighters."

\-----

As soon as they had officially entered the Freedom Fighters' camp, Jet had offered to take Katara on a tour of the camp. Naturally, Zuko had refused that Katara go with him alone and tagged along for the tour, much to her dismay.

She had tried to explain to him that it was important that he rest in the small hut that Jet had provided them to sleep in for the night, and Zuko was considering taking her up on the offer to take a small nap when Jet also suggested he do it, too.

At Jet's suggestion, Zuko decided that there was no way in the entire world that he was leaving Katara alone with Jet unsupervised. He did his best to fake pleasantry and tag along for the tour, but he knew that it didn't come out that way. He also knew that Jet was slightly irritated that he came along. And he didn't care what Jet thought.

When it was time for dinner, Jet was off talking with the other Freedom Fighters as they all danced and moved around the cooking fires when Zuko found time alone to speak to Katara. He felt as if it were the first time since they were brought to the Freedom Fighters' camp that he could have a somewhat private conversation with her.

"I don't trust him, Katara," Zuko said.

Katara rolled her eyes. "You and Sokka don't trust most people."

"I really don't trust him," Katara."

Katara was fiddling with her braid. She looked over at Zuko with wide eyes. "But Zuko, we just met him—and he's fighting against the Fire Nation. Give him a chance."

Zuko scowled and turned his head, looking into the fire burning low in the cooking pit.

Katara sighed. "We really should change that bandage…and maybe I could try to work on it again?" she offered.

Zuko's features softened and he nodded. "I'm tired," was all he said.

\-----

Katara slept easily that night.

When she awoke, Zuko was seated cross-legged across the small hut with his arms crossed over his chest. It looked as if he was nodding off a little, and the dark circles under his eyes were a little jarring.

"Did you actually get any sleep?" she asked.

Normally Zuko was the first one asleep during the night, and she was the last. And unless she was very tired, she frequently had a difficult time staying asleep. Meanwhile, once Zuko was out, he usually stayed out.

"A little," he mumbled.

She sighed and stretched her arms over her head. "Have you gotten anything to eat yet?" she asked.

Jet had offered them a spot of breakfast once they had woken up and come out of the little hut he lent to them. She hoped that Zuko—

"Not yet," he replied.

Her shoulders slumped a little and she sighed again. "Why not? You're still recovering, you know."

"I wasn't hungry."

Katara quirked her eyebrow, knowing that was an outright lie. Bristling a little, she crossed her arms over her chest and uttered, "fine."

She stood to her feet and stretched her back. "I'm going to go meet up with Jet and get something to eat. I think he said something about having caught some duck for breakfast. I've never heard of a 'duck', so I'm interested in what it tastes like," she said simply before she walked away from Zuko.

She knew that Zuko would follow her. She soon heard the creaking of the floorboards of the hut behind her when he got up from where he sat.

When they sat down for breakfast, Zuko sat close to her. Normally, she wouldn't notice, but he seemed to be attempting to sit far closer to her than usual. She frowned slightly, but tried not to think much of it.

"Katara, so glad to see you!" Jet said as he moved to sit down on the other side of her. "Did you sleep well?"

He briefly inclined his head in Zuko's direction and then turned back to Katara. She felt the tips of her ears darken.

She nodded and looked at the small spread of breakfast out in front of her. It was nothing like she'd ever seen before. It was even different than what had been offered to her in the Air Nation and Kyoshi Island. Instead of pastries, there were various different types of meats and what looked to be some sort of egg dish being cooked by Pipsqueak, who waved at her when he noticed her looking over.

"So, what would you like to try first?" asked Jet.

Katara smiled. "The duck that you mentioned last night. I've never had duck."

Jet's eyes lit up. "Oh, well, you've certainly missed out."

She chucked. "Well, I must say, you've really missed out on my gran-gran's sea prunes!"

"I've never even heard of those!"

Katara smiled. "They're a delicacy back home. Isn't that right, Zuko?"

She glanced over her shoulder at the prickly boy beside her. He was poking at a piece of meat. Next to her, he felt warm and Katara wasn't sure if she should be concerned or not.

"Woke up on the wrong side of the hut this morning?" asked Jet in attempt to make some light humour at the table.

Zuko turned to look over at him with his jaw set. "More like I woke up on the wrong side of the for—"

Katara sensed what he was going to say, and promptly brought her elbow down on his thigh. He immediately tensed and sat straighter, and she momentarily felt bad about elbowing him due to the injuries he had received the day before, but it had the desired outcome.

Jet acted like he hadn't noticed what had happened, and for that, Katara was grateful. When she turned back to him, he was smiling. "So, you're a healer? I had no idea that waterbenders could heal," he said.

Katara nodded. "Neither did I until I accidentally did it! It's very helpful…at times," she said as she glanced out of the side of her eye at Zuko, who appeared to be chewing on a piece of meat finally.

Jet laughed. "Oh, I imagine. Does he always get hurt like that? Taking on opponents tougher than him?"

 _Well, that's not true,_ she thought.

She was about to open her mouth to dispute what Jet said when she felt Zuko stand up from beside her. He moved a little too quickly, and he staggered a little beside her. She glanced over at him, slightly surprised at the sudden movement.

"Is everything fine?" Jet asked.

"Yes." Zuko's reply was tight lipped and concise.

Zuko left the table, the rest of his food seemingly untouched on his copper plate. Katara sighed and glanced down at her own.

"What's gotten into him?" Jet asked.

She sighed again. "He's got a lot going on, and he's just stressed."

Jet shrugged his shoulders and leaned back lazily. "Well, it'd be great if you stayed here, you know," he said. "We could really use a healer in our ranks."

Katara smiled up at him, feeling her entire body heat up at the sound of his voice and the thoughts of Zuko's stress vanish from her mind. She knew she was blushing furiously. "I'll think about it."

Jet shrugged his shoulders. "What's there to think about? Is that gloomy guy over there your keeper?" he asked, motioning toward Zuko who was now leaning up against a tree and watching them very closely.

Katara felt her mouth move downward into a frown. Zuko seemed to be even more so overbearing than he usually was since they entered the Freedom Fighters' camp. It kind of made her feel unsettled, especially since Jet had taken notice to it.

"Well, no. Zuko's not like that. He's just—friends with my older brother."

Jet crossed his arms over his chest. "And is your brother your keeper?"

"Well, no—"

"Then you can make up your own decision whether or not you want to join our ranks. Think about it Katara. Here you can do good in the world and help take down the Fire Nation and liberate oppressed villages."

Katara sighed. "As much as I'd love to help you guys, but I really need to help Zuko get to the North Pole—"

"He seems like an awfully capable guy to get there on his own."

Katara felt slightly frustrated. "I'm sorry, Jet. But there's also something I need to do in the North Pole, too."

"Oh?"

She touched the necklace that hung around her throat. "The Fire Nation is heading north. I want to help protect the Northern Water Tribe, to prevent what happened to my tribe."

Jet narrowed his eyes. "The Fire Nation took someone away from you, didn't they?"

She nodded. "My mother."

Jet leaned up against a nearby tree and fiddled with the piece of wheat that hung loosely from his lips. "The Fire Nation destroyed my village when I was little. They killed my parents."

Katara glanced up at him. All the frustration she felt earlier had melted away. "I'm sorry."

He smiled softly. "Don't be. You're not the Fire Nation."

\-----

Zuko found a day with the Freedom Fighters to be terrible. He had done his best to remain as close to Katara and Jet as possible, only letting her out of his sight in order for her to take care of her more intimate needs.

In the afternoon, Jet had decided to watch Katara practice her waterbending, and Zuko had decided to try and see if he could salvage what was left of his whale-tooth spear a few paces away from them. He had been unsuccessful to repair it, and just decided that it would function as a large dagger.

He likes to think that Jet was also unsuccessful to keep Katara to himself. Zuko had smirked when he realized that Jet knew that he was refusing to let Katara get out of his sight, and even more so when he seemed to be getting too close to her that he'd get interrupted by one of his own.

Smellerbee was a small young girl with a boyish appearance. She had come to Jet three times in the afternoon to whisper something in his ear. Zuko was curious why she kept on coming back, but did his best not to show it. He had feigned indifference by creating a new hilt out of leathers and fabrics he had found around the Freedom Fighters' camp with the help of Pipsqueak and the Duke (his small attacker from the day before who blindfolded him), much to his surprise.

It was nighttime when Zuko was walking back to the small hut that he shared with Katara when he heard whispering in the shadows. He paused briefly and pulled himself back against a nearby tree until he was flush against it.

There were kids that he didn't recognize talking, but they sounded excited. Occasionally, their voices raised and he heard the words "blasting jelly" and "give freedom" and finally "Gaipan."

Zuko had remembered seeing signs pointing slightly north before he and Katara entered the forest leading to Gaipan. He assumed it was a small little hunting village, so he was curious as to what the Freedom Fighters wanted with it.

Whatever it was, it made him feel uneasy. He furrowed his brow and pushed away from the tree to head back to his hut. He was going to tell Katara to repack all of her things (he hadn't unpacked anything) and that they would head out as soon as day broke.

When he entered their shared hut, Katara was sitting on her bedroll. Her hair was down along her back with a small section flipped over her shoulder. She was lazily running her comb through it.

He cleared his throat to let her know he was back, and he diverted his eyes.

"Where've you been? I'm surprised you weren't in here when I got back," she said icily.

Zuko sighed and moved to sit down on his bedroll (actually, the only thing he unpacked). "I want to leave," he said.

The comb paused in her hair and she turned to look at him. "Zuko, you're still injured. We should at least stay here for at least two more days—"

He felt his body temperature heat up at that suggestion. He leaned forward until his elbows rested on his knees and he frowned.

"Have you forgotten why we left the Air Nation? Why you came with me?" he asked. "We didn't leave for you to fall in love with some forest-dwelling play soldier."

As soon as the words left his mouth, Zuko instantly realized that what he had said was wrong. Katara visibly recoiled and pulled the comb away from her hair. The look she gave him was practically murderous and her back went rigid.

"I am not in love with him! And I want to get to the North Pole as fast as possible!"

Zuko scoffed. "Well, it' sure doesn't seem like you do!"

"Oh? What do you know!"

Zuko dug his fingers into his pant legs and he felt them heat up through the fabric. "Well, I do know that you've been following Jet around the entire camp and forest floor like a—like a—"

Katara braced her hands on her hips. "Like a what?" And Zuko was pretty sure he heard the sound of ice cracking in a nearby bowl that she had set up. She must've frozen it when he first mentioned leaving.

"Like a little girl following around her first crush!"

Katara's hands moved from her hips to cross over her chest. "Ugh! That's what Jet says about you, always following us around!"

"'Us'?"

Katara let out a frustrated noise. "Why are you acting like this? Did Sokka ask that when he's not around that you need to fill in for him as the overprotective big brother?"

"You think I'm being overprotective?"

"Yes, I do!"

"Well, I don't trust him!"

"Well, I do!"

"And that's what's wrong, Katara! Can't you see that he's up to no good?"

Katara bristled. "Jet is a good guy, Zuko! And I'm sorry that you can't see that!"

Zuko's eyes narrowed. "I don't trust him, Katara. He's up to no good and I don't want to be around to figure out what he's got planned."

"You know, he offered me a chance to join the Freedom Fighters and I told him that I can't," she said almost cruelly.

"What?" Zuko felt himself recoil slightly, his mind trying to process what Katara had just told him.

"He asked me to stay, and I told him I couldn't because we need to go to the North Pole," she said. "I still want to go to the North Pole, because I have a duty to protect my people."

Zuko let himself fall back against the wall of the hut. He slumped a little. "That's not your duty."

"Yes it is! You can't tell me what is and what isn't my duty! You're not my brother! You're not my father!"

Zuko lurched forward, the small space of the little hut suddenly growing chiller and Katara felt a harsh breeze whip the hair that she had flipped over her shoulder move it back. They both made a mental note to secure the coverings on the small windows.

"It's my duty to protect them," he said.

Katara's gaze suddenly softened and her shoulders slumped. She glanced down at her hands, now clasped together in her lap. She looked back up at him, her eyes meeting his and she smiled softly.

"You think that it was your duty to protect the North Pole, but don't you realize, Zuko? It's not just your duty. It's mine, too," said Katara.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm the worst human alive. I can't believe it took me so long to get this out. 
> 
> But believe me, the past few months have been brutal on the work front, and now that I'm sick I feel like I have time to actually write. Woohoo.
> 
> Thanks for reading!


	15. The Dam

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow, it's definitely been a long time. I'm going to say why very concisely: I got insanely busy at work, was in a wedding from hell, had a family emergency, my dog died, I quit my job, got hit by a damn hurricane, moved across the country and then got a new job. It's been hell.
> 
> But, good news! I'm pretty much done with Chapter Sixteen!
> 
> And, as always, thank you all so much for reading

Chapter Fifteen: The Dam

Zuko could hardly sleep. He spent the entire early night on his side, fatigued out of his mind. He couldn't help that he had a sickening feeling that they were in a dangerous place, and in the back of his mind, he knew Sokka was kicking and screaming that Katara was there, too.

He also knew that their grandmother would be hitting him over the ears for this, and that his mother would be shaking her head.

He had dozed off sometime in the night, but not the entirety of it. He woke to Katara's bedroll empty and cold with moonlight streaming through the small window. His heart momentarily stopped and he scrambled over to it to place his hand down. It was cold, and Zuko swore.

Zuko thanked the spirits that he hadn't removed his boots the night before, because all he had to do was scramble a bit in the dark for his whale-tooth knife and tuck it into his belt before he was out in the cold night air.

Immediately he asked one of the kids sitting down by the fire. The kid, no more than eight, sat close by peeling an apple.

"Have you seen Katara?"

The kid glanced up at him and shrugged. They took their knife and sliced a chunk of the apple cleanly. "Haven't seen her since dinner," he said.

"You're looking for the pretty Water Tribe girl?" another kid asked.

Zuko nodded. "Yeah, she went off with Jet a little bit earlier. He said he wanted to ask her something!" the other kid continued.

Zuko looked away from the two kids, face flushing with anger and he tried his best to take a deep breath in order to calm his seething nerves. He wasn't sure if he was more upset with Katara or Jet, but he knew he'd love to see Jet –

"They went down by the river….."

Zuko curtly thanked the kid and moved away from the camp and in the direction of the river, or where he thought the river was. He hated that they insisted on blindfolding him when they brought him to their camp.

He searched for about an hour, first on the outskirts of the camp and then a little beyond. When he grew even more tired than he already was, Zuko leaned up against the tree and slumped forward. He took a deep breath, counted to ten, and stood up straighter against the tree. Taking another deep breath, he slowly let it out, and that was when he felt it.

Opening his eyes, Zuko turned left and started in a slow and careful pace in the direction of the water. It wasn't a far walk, and Zuko wasn't surprised. He figured the Freedom Fighters would have camped near to a water source. He was able to discover it fairly quickly when he got the sense of where it was.

He knew that he was close when he heard the water, followed by voices. They were low, and sounded almost like murmurs. Narrowing his eyes, Zuko placed his hand above his knife and quietly moved toward the noise.

_"Can you, I dunno, bend what you can't see?"_

Katara giggled. _"I've never tried it before, but I'll be more than happy to try for you!"_

Zuko crept a little closer and vaguely in the moonlight that broke through the trees saw Katara raise her arms over her head, take a deep breath, and pull back. He watched as she went through the movements with a fluidity that he knew Master Pakku would be proud in some other circumstance, but he knew that her waterbending master wouldn't be happy to see her using her abilities for some tree-dwelling—.

A twig snapped behind him and he startled. His hand fell to his whale-tooth blade at his hip and the other was pulled back. He would rather not, but he was ready to firebend if necessary. It just depended on his opponent.

A small squirrel-cat appeared behind a bush, its bushy tail bristled and beady eyes wide in confusion. Zuko felt his shoulders relax.

"Zuko? What are you doing here?" He jumped when he heard a voice behind him.

Katara had her arms crossed over her chest, looking extremely disappointed in him. And Zuko hated it.

He stood up straighter and crossed his arms over his chest.

"I feel like I should be asking you the same thing," he said.

She narrowed her eyes at him. "Zuko—."

At that moment, Jet chose to come into Zuko's line of vision. Seeing Zuko, Jet smirked lazily and draped his arm around Katara's shoulders and pulled her slightly to him. It was almost possessive, and Zuko wanted Jet to lose his hand.

"Hey, Zuko. Funny I should see you out here."

"What do you want with Katara?"

Jet looked taken aback for a mere second, and seemed to gather his bearings quickly. "I just wanted to see her bending. I've never seen a waterbender before, y'know."

"I didn't think to see you as someone who would appreciate waterbending."

"Zuko!" Katara hissed, shrugging out of Jet's grasp.

"Whatever you're doing, I want you to keep Katara out of it," he said, refusing to glance at Katara and keeping his eyes locked on Jet.

Jet's eyebrow quirked upwards and he smirked. "Oh, so you're opposed to her making her own decisions?"

Beside him, Katara bristled.

There was a beat where no one said anything. Zuko had his hand poised over his whale-tooth knife just as Jet, across from him, made a move that showed that he was resting his hand carefully over a curved sword. Katara stole a few glances between the two of them, unsure of what was to come.

"You caught me, Zuko." Zuko didn't like the smirk that was still plastered all over Jet's face. "Yes, I'll admit that I'm trying to rid the Fire Nation out of this forest."

Katara took a deep breath and swung around at him, her braid whipping around to her back. "See, Zuko? Jet's just trying to—"

"How do you plan to do that?"

Jet wrapped his arm around Katara's shoulders again. She blushed, and Zuko curled his hands into fists. "We just have to make some sacrifices to achieve that goal is all."

Katara froze in Jet's grasp and turned to look at him. All traces of her blush now long gone. "Sacrifices?" she asked.

Jet froze for a split second, and then visibly relaxed. Katara's eyes widened and she pulled away from him and took a step back.

The look in his eyes was almost fanatic, and she didn't like it. The man that stood before her wasn't the one she had enjoyed speaking to and spending time with over the last couple of days. He looked deranged, almost.

"Katara, we're in a war. Sacrifices must be made if we want to run the Fire Nation out."

"What kind of sacrifices, Jet?"

Jet looked as if he was trying to shrug off what he said, like it were nothing but a slip of the tongue. He made a move to drape his arm over her shoulders again, but she moved away from him.

"Don't be like that, Katara," he said.

Zuko narrowed his eyes. "What have you done?" He now gripped his whale-tooth knife tightly. He was sure his knuckles had turned white.

Jet smirked. The deranged look in his face yet to leave. "Nothing that won't go unrecognized by us Freedom Fighters—the great sacrifice made by the citizens of Gapian!"

"What have you done?" he roared.

Zuko's eyes widened, and he was about to respond when Katara moved forward.

"Are you crazy?" Katara turned to look over at him. "Zuko, we have to warn them!"

Zuko nodded and just as she was about to move into a sprint toward Gaipan, Jet reached out and clasped around her wrist tightly. Katara made a surprised and pained noise, digging her heels into the earth below and shooting Jet a fierce glare that Zuko would've cowered under back in the South Pole.

He pulled his whale-tooth knife from its sheath and glared at Jet. The Freedom Fighter stood calmly with Katara's wrist clutched tightly in his hands.

"I'm afraid I can't let you do that, Katara."

Katara visibly shuddered against him. "What have you done, Jet? There are innocent people in that town! Women! Children! Would you really be okay with hurting them?"

Jet smirked. "Nothing you haven't already helped me with."

"What? No! I haven't done—." Katara's eyes widened and she thrashed against him.

Jet smirked and glanced toward the river, now swollen beyond what Zuko remembered when he saw it a few days before, before the Freedom Fighters took him and Katara in. Zuko's heart dropped and he turned back to Jet. Katara had followed his eyes and came to the same conclusion.

The water beside them rippled and moved. "You can't do this, Jet! If you do this, they will all be gone! You wouldn't just be killing Fire Nation soldiers!"

"You're going to break the dam," Zuko said.

Jet was nothing but smug, and he grew too comfortable in the situation. His grip on Katara's wrist slackened, and Zuko watched Katara take advantage of his lack of attention.

She quickly lunged forward, her wrist slipping free from Jet's fingers and she immediately pulled a full stream of water from the river. Jet didn't have enough time to react before she had it crash into him with such a force that Zuko briefly wondered if she had managed to break any of Jet's bones in the process. He hoped she had, and mentally cheered her on.

Zuko took a couple of seconds to wonder how far away Katara had managed to knock Jet away to, but squashed down that thought when he turned to look at her. Instead of the usual fire in her eyes, he saw nothing but hurt. Betrayal and anger.

"You were right," she said quietly.

He didn't say anything.

"And I have to stop this," she breathed.

Zuko's eyes widened. "Katara, wait—"

"I'm the one who filled the river, so I should be the one to stop the river."

"No, we should stop them from breaking the dam," he said. "That's the only logical—."

"You won't be able to."

Zuko turned to see Jet standing, or rather hunched over, only a few steps from them. He was coughing and sputtering, and for once he didn't look pleased.

\-----

She knew it was a terrible idea, but it was the only one she could think of. In this instance, she wished she could earthbend an entire wall around Gaipan. She couldn't think of a great way to stop it with waterbending. Freezing it would only be temporary, and likely wouldn't hold up for long if the water current kept rushing down the length of the river.

Jet was back, and now Katara clearly saw that he wasn't the guy she thought he was. Zuko had been right all along, and she had been wrong. And she hated that more than anything.

"I have to do this, Zuko," she said softly. "It has to be me."

She didn't wait for him to reply, she just turned and started off in the direction of Gaipan. She only turned to look over her shoulder once, to see that Zuko had taken a step toward her with his hand outstretched as if he were trying to grab onto her, but he stopped when Jet lunged at him.

She took one last look at him, it wasn't clear. She wasn't sure if it was because he was moving so quickly against Jet or if it were because of the tears threatening to spill down her cheeks.

Zuko couldn't waterbend nor could he earthbend. He wouldn't be able to stop the water, but she could. Katara knew she could do it. Waterbending was all about using your opponent's energy against them. Push and pull. She had to push the water back and hope for the best.

It had to be her.

The dam had barely come into her line of sight before she saw the explosives lined around it. There was no one guarding it.

_I can flood the barrels, then Jet can't use them to blow the dam._

She took a step in its direction, and then she felt a hand on her upper arm. Katara jerked back, pulling a stream of water from the river with her free hand. She had it poised ready to strike.

Pipsqueak stood beside her, mouth drawn in a grim line and he shook his head. "You can't stop it, and if you tried, Longshot over there wouldn't have let ya."

He glanced over his shoulder at the trees, and in one of the branches, Katara saw the figure of an archer ready to strike.

"What you're doing is wrong," she said, her tone lacking any kind of warmth that she had previously used around the Freedom Fighters. "You're not just killing Fire Nation soldiers. You're killing innocent people."

Pipsqueak looked away. "We're doing what needs to be done."

Katara narrowed her eyes. "The Avatar won't let that happen," she said.

At the mention of the Avatar, Pipsqueak stiffened. "The Avatar is Fire Nation, and he will kill us all!"

Her stream of water rippled under her control.

"The Avatar brings me hope, regardless of where he comes from! And I know for a fact that the Fire Nation reincarnation of the Avatar isn't bad!"

The large boy scoffed. "How would you know? No one's seen—!"

"Zuko's the Avatar! And when he—!"

She was cut off when she heard, loud and clear, the sound of a bird. Normally she'd find it to be a beautiful sound, but the melody brought so much dread to her very being that her breath caught in her throat.

Pipsqueak glanced away from her, toward where Longshot hid. The stream of water that Katara had in her control smashed into Pipsqueak's side, sending him sprawling against the forest floor. Once he was down, she froze him in place.

She knew he'd be able to break out of the water's hold soon, so she ran back toward the water's bank and formed a large wave. She sent it toward the barrels, as fast as she possibly could. If she were to knock them away and drown them, they'd be useless to Jet and his Freedom Fighters.

The sound of the waves hitting against the barrels did not happen. Katara was barely able to register an arrow with a flamed tip shoot down and hit one of the barrels. They all exploded, and the dam with it. Katara's wave hit against the remnants of the explosion, washing away the remains of the dam. She was blown back.

The sound was so loud that Katara heard nothing. She lay on the ground, dazed and confused. She tried to stand, and on her third try was successful.

Standing was difficult. Balancing was difficult. She held her hands up against her ears and squeezed her eyes shut.

When her hearing began to return to her, first she heard a ringing sound in her left year. Then everything sounded like it was underwater, and then her right ear finally decided to cooperate with the left.

Katara took a deep breath and staggered toward the bank. She held herself up as best as she could and closed her eyes. She focused on only the water in front of her and nothing else. She ignored the sound of Pipsqueak slowly getting free of the ice and what sounded like other Freedom Fighters coming up behind her. She ignored the pounding of her own heart and head.

She opened her eyes and pushed her arm out quickly. A wall of water rose with it, extending from the edge of the bank where she stood and ending on the other side. Focusing on only the water, she froze it solid and created a new dam.

It was thin, but it would do until she got down to Gaipan.

"What are you doing?"

Katara turned to see Smellerbee standing behind her with a knife clutched tightly in her hand. Also behind her was Pipsqueak, now standing.

"I should be the one asking you that! You're not stopping the war and you're not doing any good to the people of Gaipan! You're killing them! And if you do this, then you're no better than the Fire Nation!"

"We're freeing—!"

Katara's blood boiled, and she wondered if this was how Zuko felt when he was firebending. "No! Drowning them isn't freeing them! You're killing them! And that will fix nothing!

"Stopping violence with more violence will only cause more violence! These people do not want to be wiped out any more than they want to be ruled by the Fire Nation! Blowing the dam and killing them all is selfish! The only ones benefiting from this is you!"

Smellerbee took a step forward. "Listen—," but stopped when someone appeared behind her and placed their hand on her shoulder.

"She's right."

Longshot stood behind the young Freedom Fighter. His eyes bore into Katara's.

Smellerbee shrugged Longshot's hand off of her shoulder. "How can you say that? The Fire Nation—!"

Longshot nodded. "This is not the correct way."

Katara was thankful for Longshot's interjection, but she couldn't help but feel the anger bubbling under her skin at the boy who shot the arrow. "You were the one who shot the barrels of blasting jelly."

Longshot looked down. "Violence creates more violence, and I'm tired," was all he said.

\-----

Zuko dodged one of Jet's fast attacks.

Jet relied on his speed and footwork more than anything, and if this were a more friendly spar, Zuko would have loved to ask for tips afterwards (that would also imply that he actually liked Jet, though). But this was no friendly spar. Jet's blows were meant to due immense harm. And kill.

"You just couldn't stay away, could you?"

_Dodge. Parry. Dodge. Punch._

"Just because you put on that blue shirt doesn't make you any less Fire Nation," Jet spat.

Zuko's heart seized in his chest and he lurched forward. A yell was ripped out of his throat as he threw a punch toward Jet, who barely dodged him. Zuko's fist collided with a dead tree, smoking at where his knuckles were joined to it.

"And a firebender, no less? What's a guy like you traveling with a pretty Water Tribe girl like Katara?"

Zuko swung around at Jet's words.

"She deserves better. Better than a spy like you."

"I'm no spy!" Zuko roared.

"Then why else would the Fire Nation be walking around giving her false hope?" Jet spat. "You're no good for her."

"At least I don't go about trying to destroy dams and wiping out innocent villages!"

Jet whirled around and lashed out. "Liar! You're nothing but Fire Nation scum! Wiping out innocent villages is in your nature!"

Zuko wasn't able to parry as quickly as he would have liked, and felt the sharper edge of Jet's blade slice into the skin of his calf. He bit his tongue to keep from yelping, tasting the coppery tang of blood, and pushed himself forward in an attempt to push Jet away with his elbow. The Freedom Fighter jumped back, avoiding Zuko's attack.

He stood straighter and punched. Fire moved out of his fist and straight toward Jet. The Freedom Fighter's anger ignited even further. Jet dodged the flame and kicked out at Zuko.

Zuko moved away and swung his leg. A flame arched outward, and Jet moved back. Zuko took a breath and moved his fist toward Jet's torso, flames licking warmly against his skin.

He didn't count on Jet kicking him in the stomach. He was sent sprawling back, and his fire hit a nearby bush and it was swiftly engulfed.

"Did you just try to kill me, Fire Nation?" Jet circled around him. "Because that will be your last mistake!"

Zuko spat out a mix of saliva and blood. He swallowed the rest and winced.

Jet twirled his swords in his hands and approached him. He lunged at him, one of his swords angled toward Zuko's belly.

Zuko twisted his body, the sword that had been set to impale him stuck in the dirt. Zuko kicked Jet's hand and knocked the sword out of his grasp.

Now enraged, Jet swung his other sword toward Zuko, who blocked it when he pulled his whale-tooth knife from his belt.

The knife cracked underneath the force of Jet's blow and Zuko had felt it throughout his entire body. Jet didn't give him a moment to recover. The Freedom Fighter jumped to his feet, leaving behind the one sword stuck in the ground and swung the one in his hand.

Zuko ducked and then stepped back. He caught the third strike with his knife for a second time, and felt it shatter. The hook on Jet's sword caught onto the hilt of the broken knife and pulled it from his grasp. It landed in the river.

He leapt back and Jet charged forward. Zuko punched twice, flames nearly hitting Jet each time. The third grazed Jet's arm, and he roared as he closed the distance.

Zuko moved to the side, avoiding the would-be fatal blow and kicked. And like how Jet had done with him earlier, Zuko's foot caught Jet in the stomach. Jet was sent back into a nearby tree. When Jet hit the trunk of the tree, Zuko heard a sickening crack that made him feel sick. Zuko took a deep breath, trying to gather his bearings, and glanced at Jet. He had hoped to see him knocked out, but he was greeted by his scowl.

"You're too late! You've lost!"

Zuko stepped back and grabbed ahold of Jet's forgotten sword stuck in the ground. He jerked it out and held it out toward Jet. He had no idea how to use a sword, but he was familiar with how to handle a spear.

"What are you going to do? Run me through with my own sword? I'm not finished yet!"

But he looked like he was. Jet looked winded and his clothes in some areas appeared singed. Zuko knew that Jet had landed a few blows on him, but he had knocked Jet into the tree as hard as he could.

There was blood beading on Jet's collar and his brown hair was starting to turn red at the bottom. Zuko narrowed his eyes at him.

"You're done," he said. "You need to stop this."

"Why don't you just kill me? You can't be so stupid to think that I won't kill you!"

Zuko didn't say anything. He looked away. Jet laughed.

"I wish more of the Fire Nation were like you, Zuko." Zuko glanced up. "You're weak."

"And you're no better than them," Zuko said. "I'd rather be weak then like them."

Jet leaned further into the tree and smiled. It made Zuko feel uneasy, and this time he looked at Jet. The Freedom Fighter smirked and dread filled Zuko's belly.

And he whistled like a little bird.

And Zuko knew what that meant.

He punched at Jet, and without even touching him nor burning him, Jet was silenced abruptly.

Jet's head connected with the tree trunk once more, and then he slumped forward. The entire forest was very quiet and still, and Zuko shut his eyes. He only felt the air around him move before it too stilled.

He reopened his eyes and glanced down at his fist. He unclenched it and stared. For the last few weeks he had wondered what airbending would feel like when he finally did it. He had expected an exhilarating rush, but at this, he felt nothing but guilt.

And then he heard an explosion.

\-----

Katara and the other Freedom Fighters had made their way down to Gaipan, where they planned to warn the mayor of the village of the impending dangers of her dam only being a temporary fix. She wished that her wave could have created a more permanent fix, but Katara knew that once the sun shined on her wall of ice midday, it'd be dangerous and the people of Gaipan would ultimately perish.

The sun was already starting to come up, and seeing it made Katara's heart beat faster.

Pipsqueak stood beside her awkwardly. He was twiddling his thumbs and acted as if he had no idea what to say to her. She didn't blame him, if she were in his position, she doubted she'd be able to either. Smellerbee was with Longshot, and for that Katara was glad.

"So, are we going to go door-to-door and tell people to leave?" Pipsqueak asked.

Katara glanced up at him. She was about to say something when Smellerbee and Longshot came to stand before them.

"The mayor's house is over there." Smellerbee pointed behind her. "Just follow that street, take a left and then take a right."

Katara couldn't force herself to smile at the Freedom Fighter. She nodded and headed in the direction she was told. She only got a few paces away from the trio when she heard the clanking of armour.

"Hey, what are you kids doing out so late? We have a curfew!"

It was a Fire Nation solider. In the rising sun, Katara saw that he was very tired. He lacked the evil she had remembered in the Fire Nation soldiers that invaded her home when she was little.

The Freedom Fighters looked conflicted. It was like they were debating whether or not to fight or flight from the solider.

Katara sighed and stepped forward. "Hi, uh, we're here to help," she said.

The soldier quirked his eyebrow. She noticed that he was carrying a spear and that it was clutched tightly in his hand. She wasn't sure if it was because he was so tired or if he thought she was a threat. She hoped he was just tired.

"And why do we need helping?" he asked.

Katara held her hands out in front of her. "The dam broke, sir. I was able to make a makeshift one with waterbending—."

"You're a waterbender?"

"—Yes—."

"What are you doing here?"

"I'm here to tell you that the dam broke and that it will probably be broken by midday," she said.

The solider—no, guard—squinted at her and seemed to think over what she had just told him. "How do I know you're not lying?" he asked.

Katara sighed. "If you want proof, the water is higher on the bank on the edge of your village. I was able to stop the waters before too much came out, but it won't hold."

"Show me," he said. "But I want the four of you to walk in front of me!"

"Like he—!"

"Of course!" Katara interjected before Smellerbee could finish her protest.

Smellerbee glared at her, and Katara gladly returned it. Despite the guard seemingly being decent enough to listen to what she had to say, she doubted he'd listen much if the wrong words were said.

They stood at the edge of the bank. The guard held his chin in his hand, fingering it carefully as he turned his head from side to side.

"It's fuller," he said.

Katara nodded. "Yes. Which is why you need to evacuate."

The guard turned to look at her. "How do I know this isn't just some trick to lure out the entire village and steal everything valuable?"

He narrowed his eyes at her, and then his gaze shifted behind her. She knew he was looking at the Freedom Fighters.

"You don't," she said. "But if you don't evacuate this village—."

"Everyone will die."

Longshot stepped up beside them. He had his bow clutched tightly in his hands, and the guard spared a glance.

The guard was about to say something else when the ground beneath their feet rumbled and shook. It felt like an earthquake. The water level was already rising again.

Once she felt it, Katara knew that her temporary dam had broken. Her heart faltered and she let her eyes slip closed. Taking a deep breath, feeling the water coming toward them, she reopened her eyes and spun around.

"We need to work quickly," she said.

The guard and the Freedom Fighters looked stunned, so she continued. "Knock on as many doors as possible and get as many people out. Have the abled continue to knock on the doors and let the women and children and elderly leave."

The four before her hesitated before they nodded and set off in different directions. Smellerbee stopped for a second, and glanced over her shoulder. Katara hadn't moved.

"And what are you going to do?" she asked.

Katara clenched her hands into fists. It was a terrible idea, but she could do it. She knew she could do it, and she would do it for the people of Gaipan.

"I'm going to hold the water back." She turned toward the river.

"Can you do that?"

Katara didn't nod. "I can," she said, not sure if it were for her or Smellerbee.

When she turned to glance over her shoulder, Smellerbee was running toward the nearest home. Katara smiled and turned back to the river.

It was cold out and Katara did not have her parka. She shivered, her breath nothing but frost before her.

_I have to do this. I helped cause this to happen. I'm not innocent._

She stepped out into the water, almost hesitating when it sent a chill up her legs and spine. Four steps out, and the water was already mid-thigh. She could already feel the water rising unnaturally fast, and Katara knew that if she didn't get it under control it would be catastrophic.

She raised her arms up, creating a wall of water before her and she froze it solid. It was easy, but she knew that this would not hold, either. The water would also spread around the dam and over onto the banks on either side of the river. The location of the village of Gaipan wasn't the best, and Katara hoped that they could relocate once this was all over.

She waded through the frigid water, melted one edge of her second makeshift dam, and curved it. Katara froze it again, and hoped that—

Katara's eyes widened when a crack formed in the middle of her dam. It splintered quickly, and the sickening crunch she heard made her heart beat erratically. She waded back until she was right before the crack and raised her arms again, creating another wall of water.

Taking a deep breath, she prepared to freeze it when she felt the force of the water break through her dam and slam into the wall she was holding. The power of it pushed her underwater, and Katara hadn't had enough time to take a breath before she went down.

Water was pushed down her throat and into her lungs. She couldn't breathe. She had no idea where she was in the water. Nothing she seemed to do was able to do anything.

Just when she thought she was about to break up toward the surface, she felt herself get knocked down again. Her back hit the bottom of the river and dragged along. The rocks scraped her hands raw.

Her limbs stopped working. She couldn't move them anymore. Black spots filtered into her vision and Katara took a breath, and then there was nothing.


	16. The Dragon

Chapter Sixteen: The Dragon

People were standing on the riverbanks in their nightclothes. Women held their children and loved ones close, and elders were whispering words into the ears of those hunched over in despair.

It was madness.

Zuko stood in the middle of the worst sight he could ever possibly imagine. Everywhere people cried and screamed.

A young woman clutched onto the lifeless body of another, her cries wrenching at Zuko's heart. People were pulling others out of the water, screaming for them to wake up. Zuko couldn't do anything but fall to his knees.

He ignored the mushy mud that sunk into his clothing, and he closed his eyes. He had failed. He had failed the people of Gaipan. Their home was destroyed because he hesitated. He was the worst Avatar to have ever existed.

Zuko jolted back to his senses when he heard the frantic wails of a young child. The child was pointing at its mother, arms waving madly and cheeks red and puffy. Zuko immediately got to his feet and took off toward them.

The child was getting too close to the water's edge. With ease, Zuko wrapped his arm around the child and pulled him away. "Stay here," he muttered quietly and leapt toward where the boy's mother was drowning.

He kneeled back down on the ground and reached out for the woman. She frantically grabbed at him, and when they finally clasped their hands together, Zuko started to pull.

The water was doing its very best to pull her back in, but Zuko was more determined. He dug his knees deep into the mud and tugged. She wailed as she began to slip from his grasp, and Zuko slowly moved to his feet, planting them firmly into the ground.

He then, too, started to slip toward the water's edge. Behind him, the little boy started to scream.

Zuko let out a mighty yell, and wrenched the woman out of the water and onto the bank. She lay still for many seconds, just gasping for breath and willing to calm her body down. The young boy cried out and ran to his mother's side.

"My boy, oh, my boy!" she babbled as she embraced her son.

She turned to Zuko. "Thank you, thank you so much!"

There were people still clambering to safety, and Zuko took off in their direction. A small girl had fallen into the water and she was about to be pulled under when Zuko reached out and grabbed her by the back of her nightclothes. He hoisted her out of the water and into her mother's arms.

"Thank you, thank you!" she cried.

Zuko gave her a tight-lipped smile and turned to look over his shoulder. At the far corner of the riverbank, Zuko saw three of Jet's Freedom Fighters standing and looking at the devastation they caused. Katara was still nowhere to be found.

He glanced around at the survivors. She was nowhere amongst them. He clenched his jaw and brought his hands in fists, and he marched toward the three Freedom Fighters. At his appearance, they looked ashamed and uncomfortable.

"Where is she?" Was the first thing he demanded.

The three Freedom Fighters blinked blankly at him.

"Where is Katara?" he asked again.

The girl, Smellerbee, was the one who stepped forward with her head bowed. "I don't know," she said. "She tried to stop the water—she said that she could do it and I believed her."

Longhost bowed his head. "If she hadn't done what she did, then many of these people wouldn't have made it," he said.

Zuko fell to his knees. He stared at the ground, unwilling to look anywhere else. He would never be able to overcome this. He would never be able to save the world if he couldn't save one small village and one of the most important people in his life. What kind of Avatar was he?

"Are you really the Avatar?"

Zuko lifted up his head.

It was Smellerbee that had asked in a quiet voice. She looked uneasy at her question, clearly uncomfortable.

Zuko nodded. "Yes."

Beyond her, he watched Longshot bow to him respectfully. Pipsqueak remained quiet.

Zuko vowed to never hesitate again.

\-----

Katara stirred, feeling warm and dry.

She stirred slightly, and her coughing brought her back to reality.

_That's right, I almost drowned trying to stop the river…._

Her eyes suddenly widened and she shot forward. Her chest heaved up and down as she did her best to gulp down more air down into her lungs. It burned, a little.

_I didn't drown in the river?_

A rumble to her right had her seize and her heart beat frantically. She slowly turned in the direction of the noise. Any surprised noise she could have possibly formulated was caught in her throat.

There, stationed beside her was the large red dragon that she and Zuko rescued from the poachers. She was sitting wrapped in a thin grey and scratchy cloak. Seemingly coiled around her was the dragon.

"Uhh," she started, but couldn't force her tongue to formulate any words.

The dragon grumbled and slowly raised its head to look at her. Up this close, the size was magnificent, and Katara could see each and every detail of the scales. If she hadn't been frightened, she'd take the time to admire them.

Katara had no way of getting away. She couldn't back up or move to the side. She couldn't even dash forward. Any way she could possibly move, the dragon would surely be able to snatch her up and eat her for its next meal.

"I-I probably wouldn't taste very good," she said. "My brother Sokka always tells me that I—."

The dragon didn't let her finish. It snorted, smoke furling out from its nostrils. Katara pulled the cloak tighter around her and did her best to appear as small as possible. That's what her dad always said if she ever got caught up with something that wanted to eat her or do her harm. Pretend she was smaller. She doubted playing dead or making a bunch of loud noise would help her here – that's what Sokka suggested.

The large red head came up to her and stared into her eyes. Its head was moving closer to her, and Katara reflexively moved back until she was pressed against something scaly. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, hoping that it was quick and over as soon as possible.

And it nuzzled her.

Katara was frozen. She had no idea how to respond to this or what to do. She slowly cracked one eye open and saw a large eye staring right into her eyes. A rumble moved through the dragon, almost as if it purred against her.

Carefully, Katara reached a hand out until she pressed it against the dragon's snout. She sighed when it leaned into her palm.

"I guess you're not here to eat me, then."

The dragon let out another deep rumble and moved its head away from her as if realizing that it was probably close to crushing her. It pulled back and just looked at her in the eyes.

"How did I get here?"

The dragon cocked its magnificent head to he side. Katara sighed, knowing that it hadn't understood her.

She wrapped her arms around herself, trying to make herself look as small as possible just in case the dragon changed its mind and found her threatening all of a sudden. Her fingers instinctively wrapped around a thin cloak that she wore.

_A…cloak? But I've never owned much less worn one before?_

She pulled it from her body and inspected it closely. It was clearly travel worn and quite nearly threadbare in some spots. It was certainly a well-used and old garment.

Katara glanced back up at the dragon, who was still looking at her curiously. She wished that she could understand what the dragon was thinking, for it would probably prove to be very useful in this situation. She had a lot of questions that she'd like answered at the moment.

She looked around quickly and found no one nearby. Turning back, the dragon was now looking away from her. This would probably be her best chance at somehow getting away from the dragon, because she had a feeling that it'd probably not sleep with her where she was.

As quietly as she could manage, she eased herself away from the dragon. She had had to put her hands on its tail for a split second, and the beast let out a low rumble, but didn't turn back to her. It was probably used to her by now, for the most part.

When she was outside of the dragon's coiled body, she cheered inwardly and started to slowly back away from the beast. Only, she didn't get very far. Her foot connected with a twig and it snapped underneath her weight.

Instantly, Katara froze and the dragon turned around and looked at her.

She expected for the dragon to descend upon her quickly and devour her, but it didn't move at all. It just stared at her as if it just wanted to ask her if she was simply doing all right.

"I need to get back to Zuko," she said.

It was silly of her to assume that the dragon understood her, but just saying that to it made her feel better about her situation.

But apparently it seemed like her words did something to the dragon. Without another second passing, the dragon got up.

Katara jumped when its long tail moved past her in the dirt, and she was yet again worried that it may try and devour her. "I really don't taste nice!" she said again.

The dragon moved its head toward her, and Katara moved out of the way and started to go off in the direction of nearby bushes when the beast suddenly stopped.

She turned back to it and saw that it had laid its head out. It looked at her as if it wanted her to climb up onto the back of its head.

Realizing that this was no ordinary creature (she doubted any dragon would be considered ordinary), Katara walked up to the dragon until she was right up next to it. She carefully rested her hand on its nose.

"Do you want me to climb up?"

The dragon groaned, and shook some leaves out of its white mane.

Hesitantly, Katara climbed onto the back of the dragon hesitantly. She grabbed onto its horns carefully, not knowing how it would react at her touch. Instead of snarling or snapping at her, it merely made some sort of pleased humming noise.

She settled onto its back. She had no clue what to do next.

"I'm not sure what I'm supposed to do now, I'm afraid," she said mostly to herself.

And apparently she didn't have to. The dragon slowly rose up, its back arching up almost like one of those feral cats she had seen roaming around the Air Nation and Omashu. She felt it spring back before it leapt forward, running through the trees.

Once they had gotten to an open clearing, the dragon's wings opened up and stretched out. Katara gasped, not used to riding an animal without some kind of saddle and clutched onto the horns tighter when they slowly started to rise up into the air and fly.

\-----

"I'm sorry."

Zuko blinked and looked up at the voice that had spoken above him. Smellerbee stood somewhat tall above where he sat, her hands clenched tightly at her sides and her face looking away from him.

"I won't follow him anymore," she said.

He still didn't answer her. Zuko really wasn't sure that he could trust himself with saying anything kind to anyone associated (or apparently, previously associated) with the Freedom Fighters and Jet.

"I said I was sorry, okay? I didn't ask for this to happen! I didn't ask for Katara to—."

At the mention of her name, Zuko immediately lurched to his feet and whirled around so that he towered over Smellerbee. Through grit teeth, he simply said, "But you still did nothing to stop him. You still were willing at one point to let an entire village be sacrificed in order to rid this valley of the Fire Nation."

He stepped close until he was almost completely in Smellerbee's space. Ordinarily, he'd hate to dot his, but he was so angry that he felt his entire body grow hot and he began to shake almost violently. Around them, the air began to whip around.

"You are guilty that this happened, no matter the change of heart," he said. "And I think that you will need to spend an entire lifetime making up for what you did."

\-----

The dragon landed in a small clearing where a large group of people had convened. Many shouted and pointed, their faces wide with amazement and disbelief. Katara waited until the dragon was on the ground and its head lowered before she moved off of it. She patted it gently on the neck and said a quick thank you before she scanned the clearing.

She was surprised that the dragon hadn't immediately taken off. She turned to it, and it looked back at her. It was like it wasn't leaving her here. She wasn't sure if she should be thankful or nervous.

The people of Gaipan were small in number, but they were strong people. They had set up temporary shelters and there was a large fire set up in the middle of the clearing. Everyone was moving around and passing around clean water (but Katara had some reason to doubt that it was all water, for some looked far too giddy given the circumstances).

Smellerbee and Longshot stood in a line, passing a bucket of water down it until it got to a large cooking pot in the middle of the clearing. Well, they were doing such before she had landed in the clearing with a red dragon. The bucket had fallen out of a woman's hands and rolled around in the mud until empty.

Zuko appeared suddenly, and one of the first things Katara noticed was that he looked tired. The second was that he was covered in mud and his clothes had definitely seen better days, but she decided not to dwell on that.

Her heart began to thud in her chest, and she broke into a run until she had her arms wrapped around his neck. They weren't hugging for long before she felt something wet her shoulder, and she pulled away.

It was barely noticeable, but Zuko was crying.

"You came back," he said softly.

She smiled and buried her face into his shoulder. He needed a bath, but she wasn't going to complain. She doubted she smelled nice, too.

"If something would happen to me, who would fix all the burns you've been managing to get these last few weeks?" she croaked out.

He chuckled and pulled back. "Katara—is that the dragon we rescued?"

She looked over at the dragon, who was still there. It cocked its head at them curiously, and Katara smiled.

"Yeah, it is. And it's friendly."

Katara stepped back up to the dragon and placed her hand on its neck. She motioned for Zuko to follow her and do the same. He did so hesitantly, slowly reaching out and carefully brushing his fingers against the dragon's neck.

In response, the dragon made a low rumbling noise in its throat, and Zuko pulled back almost instantaneously. Katara chuckled.

"I think that means he likes it," she said.

Zuko still looked nervous, and with some more gentle coaxing from Katara, had put his hand back on the dragon. This time, he gave it a couple of careful strokes before he pulled back to see the dragon's eyes staring directly into his.

Katara watched Zuko reach out with his other hand and touch the dragon on the snout, and the creature in turn purred beneath his palm. Zuko smiled, and Katara felt her heart do something funny. She turned away and coughed.

"Are you okay?"

Zuko had stopped petting the dragon, and was now staring at her concerned. She smiled and nodded, trying to wave off any growing concern.

Once he seemed reassured that she was all right, she watched his shoulders slump down and he glanced back at the dragon. "We should get going," he mumbled.

He was looking around, and Katara followed his eyes. The people of Gaipan and the Fire Nation soldiers posted in the town were slowly building up temporary shelters and passing around food. They were working together, and there appeared to be absolutely no division of status.

Despite everything, they looked ready to rebuild. And from what Katara could tell, she doubted that Gaipan would face the same discrimination that the other Earth Kingdom towns after this event.

"We need to get back to our ostrich horses…"

Katara turned back to Zuko, who was looking around the clearing. If she were honest, she doubted the ostrich horses would be easily findable at this time. Now that she knew more about Jet and the Freedom Fighters (Despite some coming to help Gaipan), she was sure they had taken them into their encampment.

Katara rocked back and forth on her feet, her hands clasped behind her back. "Or we could ride the dragon?"

Zuko blinked and looked at her dumbly. "Ride the dragon?"

"Flying would get us to the North Pole faster," she said.

"But it has no saddle…"

Katara shrugged. "I don't think we need one."

She didn't wait for his reply before she climbed on the back of the dragon and reached forward and grasped onto its horns. The dragon's tail twitched, and Zuko's eyes were glued to the large appendage.

Katara turned and held her hand out for Zuko to grab, and he took one last lingering glance in the direction where the ostrich horses probably were (or where he thought they were), and grabbed onto her hand.

He jumped up, and Katara's eyes widened at how easily and high he had sprung up into the air as if he had—

"Did you just airbend?"

Once seated behind her, her scratched the back of his head uneasily. "Yeah, when I was fighting Jet it just sort of…came out?"

The dragon shifted its footing, and Zuko scrambled to grab onto Katara's waist so he wouldn't fall off. Katara felt her face heat up again, and she heard Zuko mumble a hasty apology. She replied with a brief "it's fine," but she was sure that Zuko could tell that her ears were burning.

"Are you sure you know how to fly this thing?" he asked uneasily.

Katara glanced back at him and smiled awkwardly. "How hard can it be? Aang sure makes flying Appa look easy!"

"Appa's not a dragon, Katara!"

She tightened her grip on the dragon's horns, and slowly leaned down. She knew that a simple "yip, yip!" wouldn't do anything for the dragon.

"Um, it's time to go?" she tried.

That seemed to do the trick, and the dragon slowly stood taller and started off away from the temporary camp of that belonged to the people of Gaipan. Once they were plenty far away, the dragon kicked off the ground and opened its mighty wings. They were ascending quickly through the air, and Katara felt Zuko hold onto her tighter, now with both hands.

This time, Katara would have found it exhilarating, if Zuko wasn't holding onto her so tightly from behind.

"Oh, spirits."

Katara glanced back at Zuko and laughed nervously. For some reason, she never pictured him to dislike heights, and whenever she was told stories about the old days and the past Avatars, she never thought they'd ever be afraid of anything. And here she was, riding on the back of a dragon (with the Avatar) with Zuko, who was absolutely terrified.

He held on tighter to her, and pressed his face into her back so that he couldn't see the ground sweep past them below. And Katara felt her heart skip a beat.

She just hoped Zuko couldn't tell.


	17. The Lone Wolf

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow, apologies! This was actually supposed to go up last Friday, but with the Thanksgiving holiday and a family emergency, it was delayed. But here it is! Thank you to everyone who read the last chapter :)

Chapter Seventeen: The Lone Wolf

So far they had been travelling for days. They flew through the skies from dawn until dusk…or until Appa was so tired that he could barely stay up in the sky.

"I'm hungry," Sokka moaned.

Aang glanced over his shoulder at Sokka and frowned. "You're always hungry," he said.

Sokka pouted. "So? I'm a growing man! I'm in the process of putting on plenty of muscle!"

Aang didn't look convinced. The younger boy just sighed and turned to stare back over the open sky instead of saying anything. Sokka's stomach groaned loudly.

"Can we stop soon? I think Appa's getting tired."

Aang looked over at Sokka and frowned. "We stopped a couple of hours ago to go to the bathroom. Besides, Appa had a small break and—."

"Aang, I'm starving! We haven't had a good meal in about a week and I just want to eat some real food! Help me out, here!"

The young airbender's eyes narrowed and he flicked Appa's reins. The flying bison groaned and started to descend. They had to turn back a little to head toward a small village.

They landed in a small clearing not far from where they saw the small village lit up in the night. The moment that Appa touched down, Sokka was sliding off of the sky bison and heading in the direction of the village. He spoke in gibberish that could only be interpreted as talking about food.

The little village was almost completely hidden amongst the trees. Sokka was pleased to note that there was no Fire Nation here. The village was too far away from the ocean to make a good base for a navy and had no mines. Sokka assumed that the Fire Nation may think it'd be a good place for crops and lumber and other luxury goods. Business seemed as usual here, for the most part. Everyone seemed tired.

And that's when he noticed it.

Along some of the buildings, hidden in the darkness of the night, were scorch marks. A fight had taken place here, and by the looks of it, it was the Fire Nation versus the people of this village. It was clear who had come out on top.

A man limping along with a cane waved toward them cheerfully and went on his merry way. It was by far the most welcome welcoming they'd had coming into an Earth Kingdom village.

Sokka glanced at Aang, who merely shrugged and stepped forward. "You said you were hungry, right?"

The town was far from dull, and there were different shops and restaurants that had lanterns burning brightly outside them. Sokka couldn't remember ever seeing something like this, and he spent several moments just taking it all in. Many of the restaurants' cooking food wafted through the air, and Sokka's stomach grumbled again.

"This is…amazing!"

If he could, he would love to live out the rest of his life here. Sure, he'd miss home. But here he was surrounded by food! Food that smelled so, so good.

Sokka paused in the middle of the street, and Aang turned to give him a quizzical look. Sokka merely ignored him, and focused on all the smells that were assaulting his senses before going off in the direction of the restaurant that smelled like it had specialty meats cooking.

The restaurant they walked into had a smoky kind of haze inside, and the smell made Sokka's mouth instantly water. Aang wrinkled his nose up at the smell of cooking meats, but Sokka just walked right up to the counter.

The man behind the counter beamed at him through the haze of smoke. "What can I get for you, sir?"

Sokka grinned. "What do you have?"

The corner of the man's eye spasmed a little and he listed off by memory what they were serving. He was describing the special of the day (fresh caught armadillo swine smoked for hours over a low fire with potatoes). Aang's eyes lit up at the mention of the potatoes, but Sokka only had eyes for the meat.

"I'll take it!" he said.

The man nodded. "Sure, that'll be five silver pieces."

Sokka's grin instantly faded, and he turned to Aang. "You wouldn't happen to have five silver pieces in your pocket, would you?"

Aang blanched and pulled two copper pieces out of the little pouch he carried around in his pocket. "I, uh, only have two copper pieces. Sorry, Sokka."

A vein in Sokka's forehead pulsed and he turned back to the guy at the counter. The man merely crossed his arms over his chest and shrugged. "No five silver pieces, no meat," he said.

Sokka leaned into the counter. "But we're so hungry! And we're looking for the Avatar! We're friends of his!"

The guy shrugged again. "Meh. The Avatar doesn't exist."

Aang shot forward, now holding onto the counter next to Sokka. "But he does! His name is Zuko, and—"

"Sokka? What are you doing here?"

Sokka immediately stiffened. He knew that voice.

He slowly turned, and there was no mistaking it. There, standing beside a table was his father's best friend, Bato. He looked haggard and thin, his hair longer than Sokka remembered it to be. His left arm was wrapped tightly in a bandage. Sokka's eyes were drawn to the angry red that he could see on the back of Bato's hand.

The pain of losing of a much-anticipated meal had left him and he was immediately met with a pang of sadness and homesickness. It had been so long.

"Bato? What're you doing here? Is Dad close by?"

Bato looked pained for a second. He shook his head and said a quiet "no" before he walked up to Sokka and hugged him tightly. Sokka was rigid at first, but slowly relaxed and felt all kinds of emotions tugging at his heart.

Tears welled up around the corners of his eyes and he blinked them out. He sniffled, but pretended that he had just had a runny nose and wiped it on the back of his sleeve.

"We were ambushed by Fire Nation foot soldiers…and I was badly wounded."

Bato lifted a shaky hand and placed it on his bad shoulder. "I told your father to go on without me and carry on," he said. "He didn't want to, but our mission was more important than one warrior's life."

Sokka's shoulders slumped down. "I see," he said. "Was he okay when he left?"

The older warrior smiled and rested a hand on the younger's shoulder. "He was fine."

Sokka looked up at Bato, and jumped back. He gestured toward Aang. To Bato, it must've been weird to see Sokka with a strange boy holding onto a staff.

"Bato, I'd like you to meet my friend, Aang. Aang, this is Bato. He's Zuko's dad."

Bato bowed his head respectfully, as did Aang. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Aang. I just wished it was under better circumstances."

Aang offered the older man a grin. "Don't worry, I'm sure this was the best way for it to happen," he said.

Bato frowned, and leaned back to study the young boy before him. "Your name, were you named after the last airbender Avatar?"

Aang nodded, a wide grin on his face. "Yeah, he was my great-grandfather!"

Sokka jerked around and waved his arms around. "Aang, no!"

Sokka knew that Master Tenzin would appreciate that his grandson returned to him safely. Aang speaking, rather loudly, about being related to a previous Avatar was certainly not the way to keep a low profile.

The young Water Tribe warrior looked to the older. Bato look surprised and as if he hadn't a clue of what to say to Aang. Sokka just hoped that Aang didn't mention—

"Watch this!"

_Never mind._

Bato gasped, and so did many others in the room. Sokka looked around, and just about everyone had turned to focus their sole attention to the boy with the staff.

Without giving it much thought, Sokka grabbed Aang's upper arm and pulled him out of the building. Bato followed them out.

"What do you think you were doing? You could get us captured!"

Aang pulled free from Sokka's grasp. "I was lifting their spirits!"

Sokka scoffed and crossed his arms over his chest. "You don't have to go blab about who your great grandfather is and then airbend in front of a bunch of people! What if someone reports it?"

"They won't! These people have fought the Fire Nation, and they've won!"

"No one wins in war, boy," Bato said quietly. "Everyone loses."

Both Aang and Sokka looked away from each other. Bato stood with his hands crossed over his chest, and his eyes were like ice. Sokka felt his stomach turn sour and he suddenly lost his appetite.

Bato walked past them and inclined his head. "Follow me. I have some food back at my tent."

\-----

Bato's tent was warm and cozy and reminiscent of what the homes looked like back in the Southern Water Tribe. Sokka was tempted to look out of the tent flaps to make sure he really wasn't back in the South Pole.

In the center of the tent was a pot cooking, and it smelled divine. Sokka sat down on a fur-covered pillow, and Aang sat down on the floor next to him.

"I left it on to stew while I went out to grab some more supplies, and then I ran into you two," said Bato. "They're not the same, but they are like a taste of home."

Sokka's spirits were lifted. "What is it?"

"Stewed sea prunes. Or, well, fake stewed sea prunes."

Bato grabbed a bowl that he had and carefully poured some of the sea prunes and passed it to Sokka, who passed it to Aang. Aang sniffed it and recoiled. Bato passed a steaming cup full of it to Sokka, who inhaled it greedily.

Sokka was in heaven and his appetite suddenly returned with a vengeance. Aang gagged and turned a little green.

They ate for a few moments, and Sokka could nearly see the bottom of his cup. Beside him, Aang was mostly just spooning around the sea prunes. He had eaten some, but Sokka felt like Aang wasn't going to finish.

_Well, more for me._

"Where is my son?"

Sokka looked up and stiffened. He put aside his faux sea prunes, and then he looked down into the fire and muttered, "I don't know."

_I wish I did know. He's with Katara._

Aang leaned forward. "How did you know Zuko wasn't back at the South Pole?"

Bato looked over at Sokka and smiled. "Well, I can't imagine why Sokka would be here without having a reason to, and I doubt that reason is trying to find the rest of the warriors. Unless he had followed Zuko out of the South Pole."

Sokka shifted uncomfortably in his seat. "Ever since the two of you were toddlers, you two were the best of friends," Bato said as he took a mighty slurp of broth. "Practically inseparable—."

"How come I didn't know that Zuko could firebend until this year?"

The tent immediately grew quiet. Aang awkwardly coughed and muttered a quick "sorry!"

"We were trying to protect him," Bato said.

"From what? A firebender on our side might have actually proven useful during the raids!"

Bato set his bowl of cooling faux sea prunes down and placed his hands neatly in his lap. "He would've been taken away the moment he showed his firebending abilities."

Sokka leaned back. The firelight flickered ominously against the walls of Bato's tent.

"For years the Fire Nation was looking for a young boy Zuko's age. And I wouldn't be too surprised if they were still looking for him even after sixteen years."

Sokka was confused. He was sure it had to have shown on his face, because Bato leaned back and rubbed his temples.

"Zuko's birth parents were no commoners in the Fire Nation," he began. "He was taken away during the night by a general and brought to the Southern Water Tribe so that he could grow up away from the Fire Nation."

"Why?" Sokka shook his head. "I mean, I know he's the Avatar now and that it's a good thing he didn't grow up there, but why was he specifically taken away? There had to be many babies his age!"

Bato's eyes widened. "So it's true? He's really the Avatar?"

Sokka nodded. "Yes," he said.

Bato sighed, his shoulders slumping. "His birth mother had an idea that he might be the Avatar a few days after Zuko was born. The general didn't tell us much about it all, just that she didn't want him to grow up in the Fire Nation where he'd be trained to do more harm in the world than good.

"So, he was brought to the South Pole. To the Southern Water Tribe."

Sokka's shoulder slumped down. "The Fire Nation discovered him anyways," he said. "They came to the South Pole and Zuko was forced to firebend to protect us.

"They captured him, but we got him back."

Bato turned to look at Aang, and he bowed his head respectfully. "Thank you," he said.

Aang smiled. "It was nothing. I had to save the Avatar in distress!"

Sokka turned to Aang. "You were captured, too!"

"He was in distress?"

"Well, not really. He was mostly just really—."

Sokka crossed his arms over his chest. "What Aang's trying to say, is that there was a successful rescue mission," he said.

"But…you can't find him."

"I'm working on it! I just know that he and Katara are heading north…."

"Katara left, too?" Bato's eyes had widened and a fake sea prune had landed in his lap. "I'm surprised Kanna would let her leave."

Sokka laughed. "She encouraged it, actually."

Bato leaned forward and massaged his temples. "I'm getting a headache," he said. "This is just so much."

Aang also leaned in. "If Katara were here, she'd probably be able to help you with that!"

Bato looked even more confused. "What—?"

"Katara has healing abilities now. It's weird, and it's with her magic water," Sokka said.

Setting aside his meal, all Bato could manage out was, "That's neat."

"Yeah, it comes in handy sometimes," Sokka said smugly.

Aang whirled around at him. "What're you talking about? You've never let her get near to you with the water!"

\-----

The next morning, Sokka woke to Bato carefully packing away bits and pieces of his tent. He sat up and rubbed his eyes with the butts of his hands.

"Bato?"

The older warrior turned to look at him and smiled, and spoke in a hushed tone to not wake Aang. "I need to get back to the others," he said. "I've just about fully recovered, and I need to be back with my pack.

"You could come with me, you know. And see your dad."

Sokka perked up at the mention of his father. "Dad? Wow, I haven't seen him in—."

Aang stirred from his place beside Sokka and mumbled something unintelligible in his sleep. Sokka slumped down and sighed.

"I can't," he said. "I have to find my sister and Zuko."

Bato messily folded up a blanket and stuffed it in a bag. "We could all go to the rest of the warriors and go look for them, together."

"How long would it take?"

The older warrior thought for a second, and turned back to Sokka. "It could take a couple of weeks or a month at most—"

Sokka jerked forward. "It could take a _month_? I don't even think we have a week!"

Bato cocked his head to the side, and Sokka continued, "The Fire Nation is planning to attack the North Pole. That's why they're going…to protect our sister tribe. I have to go north."

"I see."

"I have to protect my sister."

"When I get back with the rest of the warriors, I will tell them what you have told me. Surely your father will have us sail north to help defend our sister tribe."

Sokka nodded and smiled. "Yeah, that sounds good."

Fighting side by side with his father and the rest of the warriors felt like a dream that he'd longed for. For years his father had seen him as a child, but now he was sure that his father would see him as a man. He was fifteen now, and he was old enough to be in battle.

Bato gave him one last smile and hugged him tightly. "You've grown up so much," he said. "When you find them, give them a hug for me. And let Zuko know that I love him very much, no matter where he came from."

Sokka nodded. "I will," he said.

Bato had a bag slung over his shoulder. He smiled and waved to Aang and Sokka as he turned and left. Sokka waved until he could no longer see Bato, and he felt a sorrowful pang in his belly.

"You'll see them again, don't worry," said Aang. "The war'll be over before we know it."

Sokka looked at Aang. "Yeah, I hope it is."

\-----

General Iroh walked through the corridors of Zhao's ship. They were empty and devoid of any personality, unlike Iroh's ships when he was affiliated with the Fire Nation.

_That was so long ago._

He stopped in front of a door and carefully rapped his knuckles against it thrice. There was a muffled, _"Come in,"_ heard from behind the door.

Iroh opened it carefully and shut it quickly. Sitting on the ground by her bed was Captain Aya, adjusting the bandage on her shoulder where Zhao had burned her a little over two weeks ago.

"I thought you said that your burns were doing better," he sighed.

She looked at him over her shoulder. "They are." And she pulled up a dressing gown to cover herself. As she did so, Iroh didn't miss all the old burn scars that littered her upper back and arms. It made him feel sick.

He sighed. "Most of them are old, anyway," she said.

Iroh was about to say something when the door opened again. Admiral Zhao appeared in the entryway, looking smug and arrogant as ever. He quirked his eyebrow at the sight of Iroh in the captain's quarters.

"Excuse me, General Iroh. But I'd like some time alone with my wife," Zhao sneered.

Iroh narrowed his eyes and cleared his throat. "That is, if Captain Aya would like to have some alone time with you, Admiral."

Zhao's jaw locked tighter. Aya seemed to notice this, and she stepped forward. "It's fine, General Iroh."

He swallowed the lump that had formed in his throat and he forced a smile on his face. "Maybe you'd be willing to join me for tea and a game of Pai Sho, later?"

Aya nodded. "Of course, General."

Iroh reluctantly turned away and headed out of the room, and as the door closed, he slowly looked back to see Zhao step closer to the captain. Then, they were out of sight, and Iroh sighed heavily.


End file.
